SAN FRANCISCO, April 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The country's favorite urban West Coast food, wine and spirits festival returns to San Francisco's Union Square for its third year on August 1-7, 2011.  The weeklong celebration is set to highlight Northern California's bounty of ingredients, chefs and restaurants, winemakers and wineries, bartenders and bars, spirits professionals, breweries, farmers, artisans and producers.  

Produced by the Golden Gate Restaurant Association (GGRA) and presenting sponsor Visa Signature®, the culinary festival will be centered around the Grand Tasting Tent, set in San Francisco's legendary Union Square with events hosted at the city's participating restaurants.  In addition, The Westin St. Francis Hotel will host a series of classes, demonstrations, seminars, and industry-only events throughout the week.

Taste. Mix. Pair. Engage.

In anticipation of the main event, throughout the month of July SF Chefs 2011 will be hosting cooking classes, demonstrations, and tastings at the Ferry Building and around the city to celebrate the four pillars of the festival – taste, mix, pair, and engage.  Beginning on Monday, August 1st is SF Chefs Restaurant Week and leading up to the grand opening of the Grand Tasting Tent, attendees can participate in cooking demonstrations and spirits classes and listen to panel discussions hosted by notable industry professionals.  On Thursday, August 4th, the Sugar & Spice Party will be held to showcase the use of spices in sweet, savory and liquid applications at the Westin St. Francis Hotel.  

From Friday, August 5th to Sunday, August 7th, attendees can enjoy the Grand Tasting Tent and savor tastes from acclaimed Bay Area chefs, restaurants and premium wines from Sonoma County Vintners, Russian River Valley wineries and many more at each of the signature tent experiences.  Over 100 Bay Area chefs and restaurants have already committed to the event with notables such as Matthew Accarrino of SPQR, Gary Danko of Restaurant Gary Danko, Elizabeth Falkner of Citizen Cake, Tyler Florence of Wayfare Tavern, Emily Luchetti of Farallon and Waterbar, Craig Stoll of Delfina, Joanne Weir and Martin Yan.

In addition to the abundance of delectable bites, attendees can enjoy specialty cocktails mixed with fresh, local ingredients by some of the city's best bartenders, wine tastings from local and international wineries, and mingling with restaurateurs, wine makers, acclaimed chefs, bartenders, artisans, and fellow foodies.  There are a number of new and exciting events planned for 2011 that are not to be missed. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.sfchefs2011.com.  Ticket prices range from $25 – $150 and will be available in May.  

See you under the tent!

Sponsors Include:

Visa Signature (Presenting Sponsor), Chase Sapphire (Title Sponsor), National Pork Board, The Bordeaux Wine Council, Skyy Spirits, Rhone Valley Wines, William Grant, Tannin Management, Dominic Phillips Event Marketing, Andrew Freeman & Co., Hendricks, TriMark Economy Restaurant Fixtures, EcoLab, City Club, Suntory, Hibiki, Yamazaki, VeeV, Combier, Kerrygold/Irish Dairy Board, Cruise Specialists, Dacor, R3 Builders, POM Wonderful, Anolon/Meyer Corporation, Infiniti, Pernod Ricard, Plymouth, Anhueser-Busch, Columbus Foods, FIJI Water, St. Germain (Cooper Spirits), Republic of Tea, Encanto, The French Culinary Institute, Wente Vineyards, California Olive Ranch, Sysco and Driscoll's

About the Golden Gate Restaurant Association

The Golden Gate Restaurant Association (GGRA) is a non-profit trade association founded in 1936 to promote, extend and protect the interests of the broader restaurant industry, and to serve our members in the San Francisco Bay Area. Restaurants are a high-risk and generally low-profit-margin enterprise undertaken by people passionate about a wonderful cultural tradition: eating out. GGRA is a resource to help our members keep the doors open and tables set. For more information, visit www.GGRA.org.

About Visa Inc.

Visa Signature® is a proud sponsor of SF Chefs 2011 for the 3rd year in a row. Visa Signature is a premium consumer payment card bringing cardholders instant access to dozens of perks in addition to the points, miles, or cash back they may already earn. Cardholder perks include access to and discounts at SF Chefs, complimentary 24-hour concierge services to assist with travel and entertainment planning, exclusive hotel perks through the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection, and much more.  For complete information visit www.visa.com/signature.

About Andrew Freeman & Co.

Andrew Freeman & Co. is a high-energy hospitality agency with a unique blend of expertise in marketing, publicity and creative services.  The AF&Co team will do whatever it takes to build awareness for clients and ultimately increase sales. AF&Co offers tailored, flexible programs that include: creative/concept development, branding, recruiting, graphic design, public relations, sales/marketing, training, event management, and more depending on the clients' needs. The AF&Co team is creative, direct and fun, and focuses on the areas that they are passionate about: restaurants and wine, travel and hotels, and lifestyle personalities and products. For more information, visit AF&Co. at www.afandco.com, or follow them on Facebook or Twitter.

SOURCE Andrew Freeman & Co.