SLAYCATION

Popular 33-year-old Hill Country food festival glows up with brand-new events

The Fredericksburg Food & Wine Festival returns October 25-26.

Fredericksburg Food & Wine Festival/ Facebook

One of the Hill Country’s longest-running celebrations is calling in its glam squad. On April 24, the Fredericksburg Food and Wine Festival, a highlight of the popular weekend destination’s busy calendar, announced a revamp, including a new look and enhanced culinary and beverage experiences.

Robert Oberhelman, the late owner of Bell Mountain Winery, founded the festival in 1991 to highlight local chefs and promote the then-nascent Texas wine industry. Originally a fundraiser for Marktplatz, the town’s central park, the party now supports several Central Texas charities.

Marktplatz's spoked property will remain the epicenter of the activities when the festival returns October 25-26. As always, the grounds will overflow with more than 25 booths by area chefs and 38 by local wineries, breweries, and distilleries.

Although the full schedule will not be announced for a few weeks, organizers have teased a variety of new activations. In addition to the grand tasting, the festivities include a special street dinner, an interactive brunch offsite, a yoga and wine session, a family friendly foodie event, and a curated sundry shop and sparkling wine garden.

This year’s event promises an unparalleled lineup of culinary talent, live music, and immersive experiences to foster authentic connections among Texas culinary and beverage enthusiasts,” said the fest’s producer, Hayley Wakeﬁeld, via a release.

Badges for the festival will go on sale in July. A VIP experience is available for those who want to amp up their experience. Prices have not been revealed yet, but traditionally it is one of the biggest bargains in the Central Texas food festival circuit.

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Genuine Surprise

Austin coffee shop announces return immediately after sudden closure

Genuine Joe Coffeehouse/Instagram

Genuine Joe Coffeehouse is now under and optimistic spell.

An Austin coffee shop has experienced a roller coaster over the past week. On October 31, Genuine Joe Coffeehouse announced it would close, but after some community help, it's back on track to stay open with some changes to make the business more stable going forward. One of those seems to be a new location that hasn't been announced yet, according to a social media post.

The original message announcing the closure was posted on Instagram: "Genuine Joe is closed for the foreseeable future," it said. "Yesterday was our last day of business. We are sorry to the community for the short notice- it surprised all of us too."

As Genuine Joe owner Josh Brown explained to KVUE, the property he rented had been sold to build condos in 2021. After that, the coffee shop only had a lease for up to six months at a time. Finally, KVUE reported, a hard demolition date has been set for February.

In the shop's next Instagram post, management thanked fans for their comments and established a GoFundMe page, which they explicitly said would not go toward reopening. "Donations will not go towards reopening, relocating, or any debt incurred by Genuine Joe Coffeehouse. Everything will go to the staff," wrote Leann Tipton, who is listed as the organizer of the fundraiser.

Just days later, another post went up announcing that Genuine Joe would reopen and continue business at the original location — meaning 2001 W. Anderson Ln. According to the post, what was raised from the now-disabled GoFundMe ($7,762) went entirely to staff in limbo.

The most explanation the post offers is that "a few special members of the GJ family" stepped up to help. It does not mention whether the help was financial or otherwise. It also announced some changes: an increase in prices, reduced hours, and fewer non-core offerings — namely, breakfast tacos.

This is, of course, not the whole story. The post promises to share more news later, specifically detailing the demolition and a new location.

Genuine Joe's current hours according to the post at 7 am to 7 pm on weekdays, and 8 am to 7 pm on weekends. Customers had strong reactions, and it looks like none bemoaned the reasonable changes.

"Crying tears of joy….. my family and friends are going to be so relieved they don’t have to hear me mourn genuine joe on the daily anymore," wrote one commenter. They weren't the only one in tears, if the rest of the comments were any indication.

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