On May 10th, 2022, Washingtonian held its inaugural Food for Thought Festival, presented by PepsiCo, at the Hill Center at Old Naval Hospital. Over 350 guests enjoyed a variety of dishes from 13 of the area’s Black- and Hispanic- owned hospitality businesses, and were invited to vote for their favorite dish and restaurant using custom PepsiCo branded wooden nickels. Attendees sipped on summer-inspired cocktails courtesy of Breakthru Beverage Group and enjoyed branded lawn games provided by Snap Entertainment. PepsiCo provided LIFEWTR and Bubly sparkling water stations where guests could sample a wide selection of flavors. Bond Events supplied furniture for the PepsiCo lounge at Little Pearl where guests enjoyed a specialty menu of snacks made using Frito Lay products and learned more about PepsiCo’s newest initiatives. Photo booth’s provided by Washington Talent Agency allowed guests to take photos decorated with the PepsiCo logo. Mixing Maryland DJs kept the event going with an amazing soundtrack.
During the event, PepsiCo’s Vice President of External Affairs Kenny Thompson and Washingtonian food editor Anna Spiegel awarded the People’s Choice Award to DistinctTaste and the Critics’ Choice Award to Sandovan Restaurant & Lounge.
Thank you to our partner PepsiCo for making this event possible.
Thank you to the participating restaurants and hospitality businesses: Ben’s Chili Bowl, Chef’s of the Streets, Colada Shop, DistinctTaste, El Tamarindo, Kitchen Cray Cafe, Miss Toya’s Southern Cajun Kitchen, Po Boy Jim, Queen Mother’s, Ruby Reds Vegan Meal Delivery, Sandovan Restaurant and Lounge, Soup Up, and Suga & Spice.
Thank you to our event partners: ACME, Bond Events, Breakthru Beverage Group, Herc Power Rentals, Hill Center at Old Naval Hospital, Mixing Maryland, Please Bring Chips, Select Event Group, Snap Entertainment and Washington Talent Agency.
Photographs by Dan Swartz/Revamp, Jeff Elkins and Howard Lansat.
