This year's Hill Country Food and Wine Festival will be the 18th for Emmett Fox. The onetime president of the festival moved to Austin in 1992 with his wife, Lisa, a noted chef herself. Mr. Fox worked as the Executive Chef at Bitter End, Mezzaluna and Granite Cafe, before opening Asti Trattoria with Lisa in 2000. The Hyde Park-based Italian eatery has become known for its sophisticated, creative fare and extensive wine list. In 2005, Emmett and Lisa opened FINO, serving Mediterranean, Spanish and North African-style tapas and small dishes designed for sharing. We recently discussed Austin's evolving food culture, the culinary benefits of travel, and working with loved ones with Emmett. more ›

Photos by Austinist contributing photographers Steve Hopson and Scott Miller from the Texas Hill Country Food and Wine Festival. more ›

Photos by Austinist contributing photographers Steve Hopson and Scott Miller from the Texas Hill Country Food and Wine Festival event at Long Center. more ›

First and foremost: this is an event based around wine, beer, and snacks. For those more interested in a sip-and-stroll of restaurants, try Stars Across Texas instead. Sunday Fair has always focused on an amazing variety of wine from around the globe, along with fun food items like salsa, jams, dips, crackers, sausage, and pie. You'll be able to snack to your heart's content, and there will even be some limited heartier fare on hand from Maudie's, Max's Wine Dive, The Salt Lick, and Mandola's. more ›

If you're the type of person to get easily embarrassed over some purple teeth when sipping the red vino, move along. But, if you're the type of person who devours bold red wine, then the Hill Country Food and Wine Fest has an event that's perfect for you : Big Dog Reds. more ›

As executive chef at Austin's Driskill Grill, Bull was nominated for Best New Chef Southwest by the James Beard Foundation, and his restaurant topped the Statesman rankings for three years in a row. During that time, Bull also made a celebrated appearance on the television show Iron Chef America, cooking secret ingredient wild boar against celebrity chef Bobby Flay. more ›

We’ve recently learned that California’s Paso Robles wine region is geographically a lot like the Texas Hill Country, in that in that both have rolling hills and arid soils. The key difference, though, is that the former is close to the Pacific Ocean, and serves as the backdrop for the upcoming reality show, The Winemakers, which begins broadcast this May on PBS. more ›

Domenica Totty now serves as one of the winemakers at the helm of this century-old operation. She'll be in town next week for the Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival, representing Beaulieu at Stars Across Texas, Big Dog Reds and Mini Swirlwind. To prime everyone's palates, Totty generously shared with us some of the secrets of her craft. more ›

If the "sip and stroll" food event is your thing, there is no higher level to this experience than Stars Across Texas. It's always one of the top nights of the year for foodies, and many of the wine and restaurant industry's top talents will be on hand to show off their latest creations. Adding to this year's intrigue is a relocation from the Hilton downtown to the more dramatic environs of The Long Center. more ›

As Food and Beverage Director, Mark Dayanandan oversees culinary operations and service staff at Hilton Austin's restaurants, banquet halls and bars. He's an impeccably trained chef who's cooked all over Europe, prepared meals for presidents and celebrities, and received the Hilton Hotels Corporation's coveted "Diamond Chef" award. You can ogle his multi-tasking skills at Stars Across Texas, where he'll be representing the hotel. more ›

This slurp-fest is billed as an “anything but Cabernet” tasting, by which they are not suggesting peach and watermelon wine coolers will be bandied about. Oh no, au contraire. Instead, several winemakers will be on hand to offer some one-on-one grape love and education, and turn tasters on to their latest offerings. more ›

Moderated by wine maven Jane Nickles of the Texas Culinary Academy, this tasting event will feature three different dishes, each accompanied by two different wines. The dishes will draw from the culinary history of our state, demonstrating a variety of cultural and historical influences. more ›

At Hudson's on the Bend, chef-owner Jeff Blank has flat-out defined Hill Country cuisine with his work over the past quarter-century. Working out of a restored rock ranch house west of Austin, Blank has delighted guests with exotic dishes like rattlesnake, wild boar, and elk alongside down-home favorites like trout and ribeye steaks. more ›