“Wild Wild West” is the theme for the 2023 Food & Wine Festival at Mt. Helix Park, and tickets are on sale now for the Mt. Helix Park Foundation’s largest fundraiser of the year being held Aug. 19 at the top of Mt. Helix.
Mt. Helix Park Foundation Executive Director Krista Powers said the festival is filled this year with 30 wineries, eateries, breweries, and distilleries participating to show their support for the community.
“This fundraiser is extremely important for us because we do not receive government funding,” she said. “This helps us fund the park. It helps us remain free to the community, educational and cultural programing for the community. We have some important programs for sustainability, saving the pollinators, and it also helps us restore and upkeep our almost 100 year old outside amphitheater and nature preserve.”
Powers said entertainment for this year’s event includes country and southern rock band Whiskey Ridge on the main stage, a popular East County favorite, and up by the cross, a popular local band from the La Mesa/Mt. Helix community The Tradesmen will be playing their rock, blues, and classics country.
“We have some great bands playing, some wonderful food and beverages,” she said. “We have an awesome silent auction with everything from Legoland tickets to an outing on a yacht, to trips. That is something to watch if you want to get some good stuff and support the community.”
Powers said it has about eight artists at the event along the road to the cross in the ‘artist’s alley’ and they will be selling everything from jewelry to paintings, and other artistic creations.
“There is a local company that makes charcuterie boards, KoolStone, that are made of stone and can put an icepack in the middle. They are all homemade and they keep the food cold. It is an amazing invention,” she said. “We also have favorite artists from past years, some new people. There will be a lot going on at the event.”
Powers said VIP has their own special hour from 5-6 p.m., with close parking at the fire station, and general admission begins at 6 p.m. with parking at Grossmont High School with a free shuttle for all the attendees from both locations. At 8 p.m., the main program starts at the amphitheater with music, dancing, and other festivities.
“This event is super fun,” she said. “It has transitioned from what used to be known as The HeART of Mt. Helix, with just a few wine and food tastings, to now, a wonderful food and wine festival, at one of the highest peaks in San Diego with a 360-degree view. With all the art and music, it is an incredible evening, a great date night, or a night with a bunch of friends.”
Powers said the park is shut down for about two and a half days prior to the event as they transform the park.
“It takes a lot of work and a lot of volunteers,” she said.
Powers said with the influx of new people in the area, they decided to change the name last year, to reflect what the event was, and it worked as they sold more tickets than ever with the name change, providing more funds for the park, which in turn, helps the community.
The Mt. Helix Park Foundation is a nonprofit for Mt. Helix Park, which was dedicated in 1925 with its huge outdoor Amphitheatre nestled into the hillside below the magnificent 35-foot-tall Christian cross crowning the 1,370-foot mountain peak, is one of the most recognized landmarks in San Diego County.
For more information about the park, the event, and to purchase tickets, visit mthelixpark.org.
