A relaxed spring gathering of NSW wine, food, small-batch spirits and live music returns to Wahroonga Park on 25 October 2026, from 11am to 5pm.
Wahroonga Food + Wine Festival 2026: A Spring Day In The Park
On a spring morning in Wahroonga, the first signs of the day are likely to arrive quietly. The grass at Wahroonga Park will still hold the coolness of the night, the rotunda will sit beneath its canopy of trees, and along Coonanbarra Road the neighbourhood will begin to stir.
By late morning, the park will have changed character. Tables will fill, glasses will catch the sunlight, musicians will take their places near the rotunda, and the aromas of food cooking across the grounds will begin to mingle with the scent of the surrounding trees.
This is the setting for the WAHROONGA Food + Wine Festival 2026, returning on Sunday 25 October for a day that brings together NSW winemakers, distillers, brewers, food producers, cooks, musicians and the wider North Shore community.
The festival runs from 11am to 5pm at Wahroonga Park on Coonanbarra Road. Entry is free, making it as much a community day in the park as it is a food and wine event. Wine tasting is optional, with tasting packages available for those who want to explore the producers more closely.
Wahroonga Food + Wine Festival And The North Shore
Wahroonga has a particular kind of suburban landscape. The Upper North Shore is known for its leafy streets, established gardens and large areas of public green space, and Wahroonga Park feels very much part of that setting.
Rather than placing food and wine behind the walls of a restaurant, the festival brings the experience outdoors. Visitors can move between producers, settle on the grass, listen to music and spend time with friends and family without needing to follow a formal itinerary.
That sense of openness is central to the character of the day.
The 2026 festival is also a reminder that a food and wine gathering does not necessarily need to feel removed from everyday life. There is no entrance fee, children are welcome with responsible adults, and well-behaved dogs on leads can attend. Public transport is also practical, with Wahroonga Station only a short walk from the park.
For a North Shore event, that accessibility matters. People can arrive for an hour or stay through the afternoon, meeting friends beneath the trees rather than committing to a long lunch or formal tasting.
A Taste Of NSW In Wahroonga Food + Wine Festival
Wine will provide one of the festival's main threads, with more than 30 NSW wineries expected to pour across the park.
The range stretches across familiar categories, from sparkling and white wines to rosé and reds. The producers represented come from several of the state's wine regions, including the Hunter Valley, Mudgee, Orange, the Central Ranges and the Southern Highlands. More than 130 wines are expected to be represented.
For visitors, the interesting part is not simply the number of bottles available. It is the opportunity to put a face to a label.
A festival tasting can make wine feel less abstract. Instead of choosing from a shelf, visitors can talk directly with winemakers and cellar-door representatives, ask questions, compare styles and discover producers they may not have encountered before.
Tasting packages are optional and start from $39.50. They include a festival tasting glass and tasting tickets, with packages available to pre-purchase or buy at the event. Anyone tasting or purchasing alcohol must be over 18 and provide valid identification.
There will also be small-batch spirits to explore, with boutique distillers joining the wine producers. Craft beer will be represented by Sydney Brewery and Six Strings Brewing Co, broadening the drinks program beyond the cellar door.
Food Gives The Wahroonga Food + Wine Festival Its Wider Rhythm
Wine may provide the event with its name, but food will give the day much of its movement.
The 2026 program brings together an unusually broad collection of cuisines. Sydney Rock oysters will sit alongside slow-cooked barbecue, Turkish gozleme, Greek souvla, Japanese dishes, Spanish-style paella, Wagyu specialities, Vietnamese flavours and Portuguese pastries.
Then there are the smaller moments that tend to define a day like this: handmade crepes, honey balls, gelato and other desserts appearing as people wander between stalls. Vegetarian and vegan choices will also be available.
The variety reflects the way Sydney eats now. There is no single culinary identity imposed on the festival. Instead, the food stalls create a loose map of different traditions and influences, brought together in one public space.
It also changes the pace of the afternoon. A tasting might begin with a glass of wine and a conversation with a producer, continue with oysters or paella, then pause for something sweet before another walk around the park.
That is perhaps where the festival works best as a social event. Food becomes something shared rather than something consumed quickly.
Producers, Makers And The Things We Take Home
Away from the main food and drink stalls, the festival will also feature an artisan producer area.
Nineteen specialty stallholders are scheduled to present handcrafted goods, local produce, gourmet condiments, homewares and other products.
This part of the festival introduces another layer to the day. A visit does not have to end with an empty wine glass and a walk back to the station. There will be opportunities to browse, talk with makers and take something home.
For small producers, these encounters are particularly valuable. A market stall allows people to explain where a product comes from, how it is made and what makes it different. For visitors, it provides the chance to discover products outside the usual retail environment.
It is a slower form of shopping, one that depends as much on conversation as the transaction itself.
Music Under The Rotunda
By afternoon, Wahroonga Park will have another layer of sound.
Live music will run throughout the festival from the park's rotunda stage, with local musicians and performers providing a soundtrack that ranges across jazz, acoustic music and contemporary favourites.
The setting is important. Music in a public park behaves differently from music in a dedicated venue. People can listen closely or simply hear it in the background while talking, eating and walking.
The rotunda also gives the festival a natural centre. From somewhere on the grass, the sound of a song can carry across the park, drawing attention without demanding it.
It is the kind of detail that helps a community festival feel connected to its surroundings rather than simply occupying them.
A Festival For More Than Wine Lovers
Despite its name, the WAHROONGA Food + Wine Festival is not designed only around wine tasting.
Families can attend, children can remain with their accompanying adults, and dogs on leads are welcome. There will be free water refill facilities near the rotunda, while food options include vegetarian and vegan choices. The event is also planned to proceed in wet weather, with visitors encouraged to dress appropriately and check official updates if conditions change.
That broad invitation gives the event a distinctly local character.
One person might arrive specifically to taste wines from a particular NSW region. Another might come because friends are meeting in the park. Someone else may simply be looking for an outdoor Sunday with good food and live music.
All of those reasons can coexist.
Planning A Day At Wahroonga Food + Wine Festival
The simplest way to approach the Wahroonga Food + Wine Festival is without trying to see everything.
Arriving around the opening time of 11am gives visitors the opportunity to walk through the park before the afternoon settles in. Wine tasters can collect their tasting packages and begin exploring the producers, while others can head towards the food stalls or find a comfortable place to sit.
Wahroonga Park is located on Coonanbarra Road, Wahroonga NSW 2076. Public transport is encouraged, with the park within walking distance of Wahroonga Station. Street parking is available in the surrounding area, although arriving by train, bicycle or on foot can make the day simpler.
Because the event is fully licensed, BYO alcohol is not permitted. Take-home bottle purchases are allowed, but alcohol bought for consumption later cannot be consumed within the festival grounds.
Event Details
Event: WAHROONGA Food + Wine Festival 2026
Date: Sunday 25 October 2026
Time: 11am to 5pm
Location: Wahroonga Park, Coonanbarra Road, Wahroonga NSW
Entry: Free
Wine tasting: Optional packages from $39.50
Age: All ages, with alcohol tasting and purchasing restricted to people aged 18 and over
Official Website: wahroongafoodandwinefestival.com.au
The Afternoon Settles Into The Trees
There is something fitting about a food and wine festival taking place in Wahroonga Park.
The pleasures here are not especially complicated. A glass of NSW wine, something warm from a food stall, a conversation that lasts longer than expected, music drifting from the rotunda and a patch of grass beneath the trees can be enough to shape an afternoon.
As the October light begins to soften, the park will gradually lose the energy of the morning. Glasses will be emptied, market bags gathered and the last plates shared. Producers will begin packing away their displays while families make their way towards the station and the surrounding streets.
For a few hours, though, Wahroonga Park will become a meeting point between the North Shore and the wider food and wine culture of NSW.
The WAHROONGA Food + Wine Festival is ultimately less about ticking off every stall than allowing a Sunday to unfold at its own pace. In a city that often moves quickly, there is something appealing about simply finding a place beneath the trees and letting the afternoon take care of itself.