FWB BBQ Festival

No admission fee to the Festival!


You know the truth – you’ve long envied our neighbors in Crestview and Destin for their wonderful BBQ cookoff events.  Well, we have one of our very own right here in Fort Walton Beach, thanks to the combined efforts of the Greater Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce, the Florida Panhandle BBQ Society, and the City of Fort Walton Beach.  The FWB BBQ Festival will take place at the Landing on Friday, September 20, from 5 to 10 pm, and on Saturday, September 21, from 11 am to 4 pm. 

    This is the second annual event.  Last year’s inaugural Festival was such a success that the Chamber and other sponsors decided to “double the fun” and offer our community twice the opportunities to sample some award-winning entries.  
    
    Mark your calendars for this festive weekend, when you’ll note the glorious fragrance of BBQ wafting from The Landing, you’ll hear the sounds of great music, and you’ll be amazed by the great variety of craft beers.

     Come watch the cooking teams scramble to get their entries turned into the judges on time.  Select teams will want your vote for the People’s Choice Award, so make sure you bring your appetite.  The event is family friendly with activities for the kids. 

In the BBQ completion, there’ll be big cash prizes and trophies:

• $1.000 cash prize and trophy for the Grand Champion (first place overall) [Team must enter brisket, pork, ribs & chicken to be considered for Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion prizes)
• $500 cash prize and trophy for Reserve Grand Champion (second place overall)
• $100 cash prize awarded to the winner of each category (sauce, chicken, ribs, pulled pork, and brisket), with ribbon for 2nd to 4th place in each category. 

Entertainment will be the Bottoms Up Band, taking the stage at 5:30, followed by Cabo Rock at 8:00 pm.

This event is sponsored by Okaloosa Gas, the Greater Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce, the City of Fort Walton Beach, the FL Panhandle BBQ Society, Dine In Out Restaurant Guide, Northwest Florida Daily News, Cox, and Cumulus Broadcasting.