If it seems like a lot to hold three major festivals in the same week, San Antonians might want to buckle up for a busy late October.
Not only will the longstanding Muertos Fest take its place at Hemisfair, but the newer Day of the Dead festival returns to La Villita, kicking off Oct. 27 with a river parade and running through Oct. 29. The same week, the Tasting Texas Wine and Food Festival will move to its new home in the adjoining Maverick Plaza for its Oct. 26-29 events.
The foodie-focused festival is sponsored by Visit San Antonio and Culinaria, which actually began in 2000 as a Day of the Dead celebration, said Suzanne Taranto-Etheredge, Culinaria president and CEO.
“This brings us back to our roots … promoting that cultural gateway to Mexico,” Taranto-Etheridge said.
Holding the Tasting Texas event simultaneously with the Day of the Dead celebration makes sense, she said. “I’m a big believer that when the community really comes together and celebrates the city in a meaningful way, I think that we’re better doing that together than separately.”
Last year, Chef Johnny Hernandez shouldered both loads, organizing the Day of the Dead festival and the James Beard Foundation-focused Tasting Texas festival all in the same week. For the 2023 festivals, Hernandez is sharing organizational duties.
“This year we’ve streamlined a lot of things. Visit San Antonio is playing a bigger role … as a production partner,” Hernandez said.
Asked about holding both seemingly unrelated events in the same week, Hernandez drew on the deep history of how Día de los Muertos was celebrated in Mexico.
“Pre-Hispanic ofrendas didn’t look like today’s ofrendas,” he said. “They were on the ground, with leaves and food from the harvest.” He also called La Villita “a culinary village,” and said it would be an ideal site for a food-focused festival, despite ongoing construction around Maverick Plaza.
Other participants in this year’s Day of the Dead celebration will include the San Antonio Philharmonic, slated to close the three-day festival with an Arneson River Theater concert featuring popular songs from the Coco soundtrack.
