In February, Austin's food and music festival Hot Luck announced the general arc of its 2025 events, from a kickoff party at Franklin Barbecue to an outdoorsy brunch. On March 5, it follows that announcement with a chef lineup featuring dozens of the city's best and most influential chefs, as well as three prominent Houston participants.
Individual tickets (starting at $207.52 including fees) and all-inclusive passes (starting at $632.14) are now on sale. The festival will be held May 22-25.
For those who haven't been to Hot Luck — founded by James Beard Award–winner Aaron Franklin, Mohawk owner James Moody, and Feast Portland founder Mike Thelin — the main draw is not just great chefs but live music to keep the night going. It's almost like a series of afterparties that many of the chefs attend. Only the most energetic festival attendees will make it to food events and concerts every night, and there are tons of options in both experiences.
Although the food events are similar to each other — always including some kind of mixed sampling — the main differences are venue and lineup. Attendees who are devoted to a few restaurants will need to plan accordingly, but discovering new favorites is usually the best part.
Here are the chefs attending each event in 2025, with the Houston chefs noted in bold:
Thursday, May 22
Giddy Up at Franklin Barbecue
Pre-party for Whole Enchilada pass holders.
- Ana Castro (Acamaya)
- Amanda Shulman and Alex Kemp (My Loup)
- Geoff Davis (Burdell)
- Lawrence “LT” Smith (Chilte)
- Nate Barfield (Hot Stuff)
- Aaron Franklin (Franklin Barbecue)
Friday, May 23
Nite Moves at Assembly Hall
Street food-focused kick-off party.
- Andy Quinn (The Noortwyck)
- Ariana Quant (Uchi)
- Arlin Smith and Andrew Taylor (Eventide Oyster Co.)
- Bob Somsith (Lao’d Bar)
- Cheetie Kumar (Ajja)
- Jeremy Sewall (Row 34)
- Jordan Rubin (Mr. Tuna)
- Sarah Lim (OMG Squee)
- Sophina Uong (Mister Mao)
- Tavel Bristol-Joseph (Canje)
- Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel (Birdie’s)
- Valerie Chang (Maty’s)
- Yoshi Okai (Otoko)
Saturday, May 24
Al Fuego at Jester King Brewery
Live-fire cooking with a "backyard gathering" feel.
- Aaron Bludorn (Bludorn)
- Amanda Turner (The Fiery Talon)
- Anthony Pratto and Xose Velasco (Discada)
- Ashleigh Shanti (Good Hot Fish)
- Ben Savage (Kalimotxo)
- Edgar Rico (Nixta Taqueria)
- Evan LeRoy (LeRoy and Lewis)
- Genevieve Taylor, Nick Weston, Lee Tiernan and Gill Meller (YETI)
- Genie Kwon and Tim Flores (Kasama)
- Joshua Pinsky (Claud and Penny)
- Justin Yu (Theodore Rex)
- Kyle Knall (Birch)
- Leina Horii & Brian Lea (Kisser)
- Michael Fojtasek (Maie Day)
- Misti Norris (Rainbow Cat)
- Nick Erven (Summer House on Music Lane)
- Nick Goellner (The Antler Room)
- Philip Speer (Comedor)
- Raul Esquer and Roy Servan (Taqueria 10/10)
- Rebecca Masson (Fluff Bake Bar)
- Sergio Ledesma (Geraldine’s)
- Sheena and Ben George (Besame)
- Todd Duplechan (Lenoir)
Sunday, May 25
Camp Sunnyside at Fair Market
Campfire brunch wrap-up.
- Ashley Christensen (Poole’s)
- Beto Robledo (Cuantos Tacos)
- Diego Galicia and Rico Torres (Mixtli)
- Ernest Servantes (Burnt Bean Co.)
- Fermín Núñez (Suerte and Este)
- Fiore Tedesco (L’Oca d’Oro)
- Ian Thurwatcher (Poeta)
- Joanne Canady-Brown (The Gingered Peach)
- Kevin Fink (Emmer & Rye)
- Mariela Camacho (Comadre Panaderia)
- Mason Hereford (Turkey and The Wolf)
- Paola Velez (Author of Bodega Bakes & co-owner of Providencia, Bakers Against Racism)
- Renee Erickson (The Whale Wins)
- Sarah McIntosh (épicerie)
- Siobhan and Taylor Manning (Cafe Olli)
Hot Luck benefits the Southern Smoke Foundation, a nonprofit for food and beverage workers. Stay tuned for Hot Luck's final lineup announcement, announcing the music lineup usually across several venues.
