Houston Chef Chris Shepherd’s Southern Smoke Festival Returns for Its Biggest Year Yet | Eater Houston

"Helmed by James Beard Award–winning chef Chris Shepherd, the ninth-annual fall food-and-wine event returns to Houston on Saturday, October 4, 2025, with more than 80 chefs offering unlimited bites and drinks, food demonstrations, live music, and giveaways. The lineup includes over 20 Houston chefs—newcomers such as Adrian Torres (Maximo), Nicolas Vera and Stephanie Velasquez (Ema), and Morgan Weber (Eight Row Flint)—alongside notable visiting chefs and pitmasters like Aaron Franklin (Franklin Barbecue), Damarr Brown (Virtue), and Katrina Ferraro and Freddy Diaz (Las Brasas). Programming features a Food & Wine 2025 Best New Chefs showcase, cookbook signings (with Kindred Stories on-site), demonstrations on the YETI Culinary Stage, and a Lexus VIP area spotlighting eight new chefs including Tavel Bristol-Joseph, Joanne Canady-Brown, Ana Castro, and Ashley Christensen. Ticketing is all-inclusive: general admission ($225) covers unlimited food, drinks, live music, and access to signings and demos, while Lexus VIP ($550) grants early entry, exclusive experiences, and access to an air-conditioned VIP lounge; talent sponsorships (from $5,000) sponsor a chef and include earlier VIP entry and access to the Chef Welcome Party." - Brittany Britto Garley