Buffalo, NY – June 16, 2026 – Taste of Buffalo presented by Tops Friendly Markets returns to downtown Buffalo for its 43^rd annual event on Saturday, July 11 from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday, July 12 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. This year’s festival features 42 restaurants and food trucks, four New York State wineries, live local music, and more along Delaware Avenue starting at Chippewa Street and continuing into Niagara Square.

“The Taste of Buffalo is one of the region’s favorite food festivals and this year’s restaurants are bringing a great mix of classic American and ethnic cuisine representing our diverse food culture scene,” said 2026 Chair Adam Roma. “We’re also excited to bring a brand-new vibe to the Taste this year with different and enhanced offerings to experience the event beyond the food itself. There’s a fantastic lineup of live entertainment combined with an expanded Kids Village that creates an energetic atmosphere that encourages families to play, explore, and create. The Taste has a long heritage of championing local establishments, and the new Taste Marketplace creates more opportunities for festival guests to support local artisan businesses, engage with creators, and take a piece of Buffalo home with them.”

Thirteen rookie restaurants are participating in their first Taste and include Chef BigWayne Jamaican Cuisine, Hiibachi Fried Rice, La Cocina De Titi, Milk Tea’rapy, Pudgy Potatoes, Smash & Roll, Street Cravings, Sweet Minis, Sweets Lounge and Restaurant, The Quesadilla Company, The Sangwich Mother, Wind Japanese and Thai Buffalo, and Yankee BBQ Smokehouse & Tavern.

The 2026 Taste of Buffalo is bringing even more family-friendly entertainment to downtown with an expanded Kids Village & Interactive Experience Zone designed to keep kids and families engaged all weekend long. Families can explore a variety of engaging activities including the Music is Art Instrument Zoo, where kids can discover and experiment with musical instruments in a fun, educational environment, along with the wildly popular Dreamy Buffalo Slime Station for colorful, hands-on creativity. Guests can also stop by Sik Braids Hair Braiding Area, participate in Buffalo Bills Kids Zone activities, and show off their skills with BBs Bingo team, which brings a visually cool photo setup and hosts quick games throughout the day. On Saturday, Buffalo & Erie County Public Library will host arts and crafts and on Sunday, FeedMore WNY will present a “Kids in the Kitchen” pop-up experience focused on food education and fun. Throughout the weekend, Crystal Beach will offer complimentary Loganberry slushie samples. Additional experiences across the festival footprint include a Buffalo Aerial Dance and interactive chalk art installation.

New for 2026, the Taste Marketplace introduces a curated shopping experience within the festival footprint, designed to complement the celebrated food offerings with unique local vendors, artisan makers, specialty products, and experiential retail concepts. Located inside Niagara Square, the Marketplace gives attendees the opportunity to shop, discover, and connect with approximately 17 Buffalo-based creators and emerging brands.

Part of the brand-new vibe being planned for this year’s Taste also includes the most expansive and diverse entertainment lineup to date, with genres such as rock, R&B, Americana, soul, blues, jazz, and more represented – striking a balance of some of the region’s top cover groups and original artists. Headliners include local favorites Songbirds: A Tribute to Fleetwood Mac, as well as The Plagiarists, The Damone Jackson Outcome, The Burkharts, P.A. Line, and the Taste’s first Battle of the Bands winner, Part Time Genius. Also new to the event this year is the introduction of the Cultural Stage, with plenty of local acts curated by Slyboots School of Music. A complete entertainment schedule can be found in the digital festival guide at tasteofbuffalo.com.

As always, admission to the Taste is free. Food and beverage tickets can be purchased at the festival for $7 sheets. Cash, Visa and Mastercard are accepted and ATMs available on site. Save on food tickets by purchasing pre-sale food ticket vouchers now available at the registers of all Tops locations. Vouchers are available in $12 or $60 increments and are redeemable for food tickets at the festival ticket tents. Each $60 voucher also comes with four free Coca-Cola brand beverages at the Taste.

For the 23^rd year, Tops is the presenting sponsor of the Taste of Buffalo. Celebrate an all-American summer at the Tops tent located right in the heart of the Taste, at Niagara Square and Delaware Avenue. Satisfy your summertime cravings and spin the prize wheel for just $1. Proceeds from the Tops prize wheel and food tent will benefit Buffalo-Niagara Honor Flight and The Firefighter Arno Memorial Foundation. Check out more Tops fun in Niagara Square and pick up a free coupon sheet to try favorite Tops Brands products. While you’re there, check out information about Tops Pharmacy and learn how to earn free money for your school through Tops in Education. Don’t forget to check out the main stage at the southern end of Delaware Avenue on Sunday for a Taste pie eating contest to celebrate the nation’s 250^th birthday in coordination with Tops too!

“Each year, this beloved Western New York tradition brings together thousands of festivalgoers to celebrate the incredible flavors and culinary creativity our region has to offer,” said Tops President Ron Ferri. “Tops is proud to once again sponsor the Taste of Buffalo and continue our longstanding partnership with one of the community’s most cherished summer traditions. We’re especially honored that proceeds from our Tops tents this year will benefit two outstanding organizations — Buffalo-Niagara Honor Flight and the Firefighter Arno Memorial Foundation — both of which make a meaningful impact throughout our community.”

During Taste of Buffalo weekend, other local and national sponsors will offer interactive activities along with plenty of entertainment and fun. Here’s a taste of some of this year’s lineup:

• Enjoy refreshing Coca-Cola beverages at five convenient locations throughout the event.
• For festivalgoers 21 and older, Genesee Brewing Company and Wright Beverage Distributing are back with four locations. The Taste’s popular Beer Garden returns with Wright Beverage umbrellas and games and offerings from Wild Leaf Tea and Pretzalo in an actual garden-inspired setting with plantings donated by Lavocat’s Nursery.
• Festival guests can take a break to enjoy their food on new bleacher seating available along Delaware Avenue in front of the Statler.
• Other on-site Taste exhibitors include, Buffalo Law | Cantor, Wolff, Nicastro & Hall, Total Sports Enterprises | Buffalo Sports & Memorabilia, Checkers and Rally’s Fry Love Express Truck, 43North and BuffaLoveBus, Green Mountain Energy Company, Hartman’s Distilling Company, I LOVE NY, LeafFilter, Lewiston Live Well, Memories on the Move, New York Animal Agriculture Coalition’s mobile dairy experience, Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA), Renewal by Andersen of WNY, Vacation and Travel Group, and Visit Buffalo.
• Additional Taste sponsors include: Bank on Buffalo, Bond Schoeneck and King, Buffalo Bills, Buffalo Iron Works, Buffalo Pro Soccer, Buffalo Sabres, Complemar, Erie County Medical Reserve Corps, Freeman Scale, GoBike!, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield of Western New York, Latina Boulevard Foods, Magic Beer Cellar, McDermott Consulting, New Era Cap, Pay2Park, Principal Financial Group, Seneca Gaming Corporation, Southtowns Trophy, Spot Coffee, ThreeSixty Marketing, Tums, Twenty6, and 26Shirts.

“The Taste of Buffalo is one of the signature events of the summer and a celebration of everything that makes Buffalo unique,” Mayor Sean Ryan said. “Every year, thousands of people come to experience the incredible flavors, talent, and hospitality that define our city. We’re proud to have a culinary scene strong enough to host the largest two-day food festival in the United States."

Visit tasteofbuffalo.com to view and download the digital festival guide featuring participating restaurants and menu items, the festival site map, entertainment schedule, and more.

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About the Taste

The Taste of Buffalo presented by Tops is the nation’s largest two-day food festival. The 43rd annual Taste of Buffalo will take place on July 11 and 12, 2026 along Delaware Avenue in downtown Buffalo. A multiple winner of USA Today’s 10BEST Reader’s Choice Travel Award Contest for “Best City Food Festival,” (winner in 2023 and second place in 2026), the Taste is a not-for-profit organization with more than 1,000 volunteers helping to put on the annual event. More than $606,000 has been raised at the festival for local charities in addition to scholarships awarded annually to local high school seniors pursuing a culinary and hospitality-related degree. For more information visit tasteofbuffalo.com and find us on Facebook and Instagram.