This Memorial Day weekend will feel different for Austin food lovers than it has for most of the past decade. The holiday weekend is usually a time for chefs to descend on Austin from around the state and country to cook for each other and do a little rocking out at night as part of Hot Luck, the festival Aaron Franklin co-founded in 2017.
But Hot Luck, which has mostly stayed silent on social media since last year's festival, is taking a rest this weekend. All is not lost, however. The festival announced Thursday morning on Instagram that it will return on October 16 and 17. That's the extent of the announcement. Festival organizers did not offer more details, like ticket information, location or chef and band lineups. Those details should be forthcoming.
Franklin and his partners created something of an extended family-and-friends cookout. Built around plates of food, not just bites, all-are-welcome vibes and a weekend of music programming, Hot Luck positioned itself as the anti-food-fest festival. Yes, there have been big-name chefs like Chris Bianco, Alon Shaya, Ashley Christensen and Fermin Nuñez, but the idea was more about meeting, eating and chatting with your favorite next favorite chef than trying to grab a selfie with a familiar face from the Food Network.
The centerpiece event of the weekend festival last year moved from its longtime home at Onion Creek Ranch to the equally bucolic setting of Jester King Brewery, but, again, no details for the 2026 fest have been announced outside of the dates.