Miami Lakes Food & Wine Festival Miami Lakes Optimist Park -- February 29, 2020

The third annual Miami Lakes Food & Wine Festival drew a large crowd to Miami Lakes Optimist Park on Feb. 29.
A celebration of community, the festival’s theme can be summed up in co-organizer Lynn Matos’ motto, “Be Kind, Drink Wine.”
Proceeds from the event, for which 1,000 tickets were sold, fund the education-
oriented projects of the Miami Lakes Town Foundation.
Restauranteur Giuseppe Zuozo and Matos, a Realtor, founded the festival in 2017.
“We want to thank everyone involved who contributed to the success of this event -- our participants, sponsors, community partners and attendees,” Matos said.
Light F/X Pros produced the festival. Patrons sampled offerings from 32 restaurants, chefs and caterers; two craft beer companies and 21 wine vendors. The night ended with fireworks, Matos said.
La Linea Band performed during the evening that was hosted by NBC 6 reporter and Miami Laker Roxanne Vargas.
Miami Lakes K-8 Center Pre-Kindergarten teacher Pey-Guy Marra was the guest of honor; she won a $1,000 foundation grant for her ‘Our Garden of Kindness’ playground and center, where kids will learn with building blocks and an iPad to track plant growth, the town said.
Rebecca Bohigas, a hospitality major at Florida International University, was the festival’s intern.
Guests sampled offerings from Anacapri Italian Cuisine and Market, Pinecrest; Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza; Atlantica USA, LLC; Beverly Hills Café; Bolay; Boss Burger & Brew; Brigadeiros Boutique; Café 4 You Catering; Cancun Grill; Chef Gio Enterprises; Don Anecio, Inc.; Dr. Limon; El Novillo Restaurant; Flanigan’s Seafood Bar & Grill; Frosty’s Lab Nitrogen Yogurt & Ice Cream; Gauchos Gourmet Market; Gerardo’s Marketplace; Giardino Gourmet Salads; Legend Seafood; Mayor’s Café;
MesaNori; Miller’s Ale House; NQC; Palacios; Salata; Salsa Fiesta; Sergio’s Cuban Restaurants; Shula’s, the original Steak House and Shula’s Steak 2; Sports Grill Miami Lakes; Sushi Bombs; Trattoria Pampered Chef and Vicky Bakery.
Also served were craft beers from NOMAD + CO. and Wynwood Brewing Company and wines from
Folio Imports; Freixenet; Askari Fine Wine Imports; Braham Winery; Silkwood Winery; Corte Alla Flora; Napa Cellars Winery; Skinny Fizz; Luis the Marinero; Casa Rovigatti; Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits; Art of Earth; Sapore Di Vini; Loco Por Ti; Papi Wines; Veritas Importer and Distributor of Fine Wine & Spirits; Delwine; Mexcor International Wine & Spirits; Ojala Wine; Hidalgo Imports USA and
Babyonstoren Winery.
Sponsors included Andy’s Range & Training Center; Baptist Health South Florida; First Origin Mortgage Lenders; Gastesi, Lopez & Mestre, PLLC; The
Golden Corner Jewelry; The Graham Companies; Layer 8 Solutions; Miami Lakes Bar Association; Premier One Lenders; Sierra Commercial Construction, Inc.; Signs & Banners, LLC and Specialty Smiles
Orthodontics, the festival said.
Community partners were RE/MAX Unique Realty; Light F/X Pros; Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits; Uber; the town of Miami Lakes; Empire Event Rentals; BLS Media Group and
Shula’s Hotel and Golf Club, Matos said.