The LUCKYRICE Festival brought together some of the best chefs and mixologists from across the city, and the world, and left the sold-out crowds with heavy bellies and light heads.

Memorable offerings were Michelle Bernstein's crispy sweetbread taco and Morimoto's tar tar interpretation, but the deserving title went to Uchi hometown hero Tyson Cole for a moo shu pork jowl creation that seamlessly fused spot-on Asian flavors in trademark form.

The NY Vegetarian Food Festival restored my confidence in the true festivity associated with sharing food enhanced by ideas and passion. It was not a large gathering of vendors, but it is quality, not quantity that makes the difference.

In recent years, concerns around food safety, health and nutrition, climate change and animal welfare have led to more people making informed food choices.

The messier the better, these festivals celebrate food in its simplest form: projectile.