Outside Lands 2016 Confirms: No Other Festival Comes Close on the Culinary Stage

In a landscape as saturated as that of music festivals—there are hundreds of large-scale events held yearly in the U.S. alone—it can be difficult to stand out among the competition. In order to do so, it’s important for a festival to distinguish itself by lineup, attractions, rides, or—one of the most recent developments in this space—by food and drink. And when it comes to offering festival goers a curated, restaurant-quality lineup of bites, cocktails, beer, and wine, no event stands higher than San Francisco’s Outside Lands .

Beginning with its opening season in 2008, Outside Lands quickly established itself as a festival aiming to offer a 360-degree experience stretching far beyond the musical lineup. Unlike Coachella, which offers a series of art installations, a ferris wheel, and stages like the water-centric Do Lab, SXSW, where musical acts share the spotlight with comedy, interactive, and film lineups, or Bonnaroo, known for its camping experience, Outside Lands emerged as the leader in terms of culinary offerings.

Eight years later, Outside Lands ’ 2016 event reassured us all that—despite other festivals emphasizing the quality and breadth of their own food and beverage selections—no other event can even come close in terms of ways to get your grub (and drink) on.

This year’s event featured 80 restaurants, 42 wineries, 30 breweries, and five cocktail bars, including 11 food and drink features. Favorites from previous years—including Wine Lands, Beer Lands, Choco Lands, and Cheese Lands, each distinct areas located across the sprawling venue within Golden Gate Park—returned for 2016, while Outside Lands delivered big with their new culinary attractions .

While Outside Lands has certainly not shied away from pushing the limits of traditional festival cuisine in years prior, the 2016 event expanded the variety of experiences. This is perhaps most obvious with the addition of Forest Feast, a special seated four-course menu provided by acclaimed San Francisco restaurant Trestle and celebrated executive chef Jason Halverson. While Forest Feast gave attendees an opportunity to get an in-depth look at one of the top local restaurants, A Taste of the Bay Area focused on bringing a range of Bay Area food trucks, carts, and restaurants to the festival. Another new attraction—and popular destination—this year was Outside Clams, a seafood experience featuring raw and BBQ oysters, lobster rolls, and clam chowders.

 Perhaps the most popular culinary experience, GastroMagic, returned for another year—and with the supplementary addition of Cocktail Magic. GastroMagic is Outside Lands’ culinary stage show bringing food, breakdancing, comedy, music, and cocktails together in a fun, whimsical, and totally unique environment. The entertainment continued over at Cocktail Magic, where five neon bars, a curated craft cocktail menu, and renowned illusionists beckoned festival goers.

Whether you were looking to sip on a Pinot Noir or Hell or High Watermelon, enjoy a sit-down dinner or grab a variety of tapas-style bites, and satisfy your sweet tooth with a cool scoop of ice cream or a cozy s’mores, Outside Lands isn’t just for music lovers—it’s for foodies. I mean, where else could you jam out to Radiohead, sip a glass of wine, and eat warm raclette all at the same time?

Check out some more of the top bites—and drinks—from Outside Lands 2016 below, and be not to miss next year’s festival.