The Bacon and Beer Festival heads to Fenway this summer
What’s the best thing to pair with bacon? Beer, of course. Luckily, for those who love both, the Bacon and Beer Festival is returning to Boston for a sixth year.
This year’s festival will take place for the first time at the concourse at Fenway Park, featuring food and drink from more than 50 vendors. The venue came to be after EatBoston founder Aaron Cohen, whose group produces the festival, hit a sticky situation with last year’s site.
“One of the employees at the Red Sox Foundation reached out to me asking me to have a table at the last event. We had to postpone the last one because of complications in securing permits, which was an enormous drag,’’ he says. “But I called up those guys and I was like, ‘hey, can we do it there?’ We kind of kept the conversation going for the next six or seven months and it all worked out.’’
Admission to the event includes endless bacon samples from participating restaurants (until their stash runs out, of course). All attendees will also receive 16 tickets redeemable for 1.5 oz. samples of beer from the breweries. And tickets sell out fast.
“Last year, it sold out in 45 seconds,’’ says Cohen.
For those who cannot wait to secure their entry, a limited number of early bird “Baller’’ tickets are on sale now, and include a festival T-shirt, a pound of Tender Belly Bacon, and, perhaps most importantly, permission to skip the line.
2015 Festival art.
The Boston Bacon and Beer Festival started back in 2010 when Cohen was working in the South End, observing how the SoWa market operated. Not long before, he started the @EatBoston Twitter account to spread local food news, and set up some smaller-scale events.
“I figured that a beer fest would be a good thing in Boston, and they were popular at the time,’’ he says. “I thought getting bacon to a beer fest would probably be pretty good, too.’’
Clearly, the city likes the way this guy thinks. The festival has been a success every year, and will take on the home of the Red Sox next month. On top of satisfying local beer and bacon lovers, the event will help to raise money for the Red Sox Foundation, Community Servings, and Lovin’ Spoonfuls. Tickets can be purchased on the festival’s website.
Saturday, June 20, 2-4:30 p.m. at Fenway Park. General admission tickets are $53 and go on sale Wednesday, May 27 at 10 a.m., Baller tickets are $125 and are on sale now, at baconandbeer.net.
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