After four years in Chesterfield, Taste of St. Louis is returning to downtown this fall. The annual celebration of local food and drink will take place in the streets and park adjacent to Soldiers Memorial and City Hall on September 13–15, organizers announced.

“We're excited to announce that we're going to move Taste of St. Louis back to downtown St. Louis, where the festival belongs,” spokesperson Chuck Justus says.

Taste It Productions, which recently took the helm of the annual festival, approached the city about the event returning to downtown. Justus says the Chesterfield community had been “very good” to Taste of St. Louis, but that when Taste It Productions took ownership of the event, they saw its future in the city. “I approached [city officials] and said, ‘Hey if we acquired this festival, would you be OK with us bringing it back to the city?’” he says. “The response was with open arms. They missed it when it left.”

The last time downtown hosted Taste of St. Louis, the event attracted approximately 400,000 revelers, Justus says. He predicts that this year’s event, which takes place during a weekend of Cardinals home games, could see around 25,000 on the grounds at any given moment throughout the weekend. He also notes that Soldiers Memorial itself will not be affected by the event.

× Expand Photo credit Jon Gitchoff Chef Taste will be on hand at Taste of St. Louis

Taste of St. Louis’ mission remains unchanged under its new owners. As in past years, the event will showcase some of the best food and drink the city has to offer in a variety of ways. The event’s Restaurant Row will feature around 30–35 local restaurants cooking food samples at a variety of price points.

“They’re destinations, places that folks don't always get to go to,” Justus says. Participating restaurants are required to offer at least one option for less than $5. The organizers are currently taking applications from interested restaurants. Invites will be offered to selected restaurants, and the lineup will be announced in the coming months.

Justus is confident that the field will be stronger than ever. “I'll be honest with you: I think with the move to Chesterfield, restaurants in downtown St. Louis disengaged,” he says. “I think they looked at their potential customer and said, ‘Well, we're not in West County, so why would we exhibit?’ It takes a lot for one of these restaurants to do this. They're taking time away from their businesses.”

× Expand Photo credit Jon Gitchoff

The Chef Battle Royale will see eight chefs take part in a head-to-head knockout contest. The action will be broadcast on a massive LED video wall—a first for the event.

The local beverage industry will also have space to shine, with craft brewers and spirits producers selling their wares. Anheuser-Busch, a longtime Taste of St. Louis sponsor, will host an installation called Taste of America. "It's a really cool concept that I've not seen at a festival before,” Justus hints.

Honoring the homecoming aspect of this year’s event, the live music bill will feature a lineup of exclusively St. Louis acts.

In addition to the main food and drink showcases, one theme will be “Healthy@Home.” Vendors will offer products, advice, resources, and activities covering issues ranging from nutritional information to kitchen safety to food myths.

In an effort to prioritize sustainability, the organizers intend to eliminate the need for plastic bottles. “I don't want to see 10,000 plastic bottles getting recycled when we can use compostable ware and reusable cups,” Justus says. “That just makes so much more sense. There’s a need for plastic bottles—don’t get me wrong. But if we have an alternative and can avoid it, let’s avoid it.” One idea, inspired by St. Louis Earth Day, is to offer guests a collectible reusable cup that can be refilled throughout the day.

According to Justus, this year's festival is not just about celebrating the local food scene; it’s about strengthening the community and giving back. To that end, the organizers are partnering with a number of grassroots organizations working to tackle food insecurity and other urgent challenges.

“Something like 25 or 28 percent of the folks who live in St. Louis don't have a healthy food option within a half a mile of where they live,” Justus says. “I'm talking about urban areas where folks who don't necessarily have access to transportation also don't have access to healthy ingredients.” Among the organizations that the event aims to benefit include the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, Lift for Life Gym, St. Louis Food Bank, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri.

“It should be a celebration of what St. Louis has to offer,” Justus says, talking with pride about the team tasked with pulling it off. “All the people who are organizing this festival are young people. They want to give back... For young folks to be that excited about giving back, it's encouraging to me. I know a lot of folks don't get to see behind the curtain, but this is a great group of folks putting on the festival for the right reason.”

For more information and updates, visit the festival's website; follow Taste of St. Louis on Facebook, or on Twitter and Instagram; or text TASTESTL to 72727 to register for updates.