Gift Certificates & More (GCM), The Best Restoration and Comfort Temp are hosting the 10th annual GCM Food Fest on Thursday, April 17, at Celebration Pointe in Gainesville.
The one-day event, which will run from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., will feature samplings from around 60 local restaurants—over a dozen more from last year’s festival—including Metro Diner, Another Broken Egg, The Paper Bag, Tropical Smoothie and Krispy Kreme. There will also be a family-friendly kid zone with bounce houses provided by Bounce Kings and a beer and wine garden sponsored by IQ Fiber.
DJ Elio Piedra of Tu Fiesta Radio will provide music at the Gatorland Toyota Stage on Celebration Pointe Ave., and The Ben Carter Band will perform live on the IQ Fiber Stage in The Promenade.
“I love getting to try food from different restaurants around Gainesville,” said a former attendee named Quintin on Instagram. “It’s an opportunity to try new things and discover new places that I haven’t been. It also gives me the chance to try different food items from restaurants that I have been to. It is a fun outing for the whole family and my kids love the music and activities.”
In years past, attendees paid separate admission and food ticket fees. This year will mark a shift to a free admission model where everyone can attend the festival and purchase food sampling tickets for $2. Beer and wine garden tickets will be sold to anyone over 21 years of age at the garden.
“We’ve spent the last decade building this event with the community, and it just made sense to remove any barriers to entry,” said Edward Lavagnino, the food festival’s director and GCM’s founder in a press release. “Now everyone can come enjoy the Food Fest, support local restaurants and be part of something special.”
Download the free GCM app on the App Store and Google Play Store to purchase food tickets and find more information, updates and exclusive deals leading up to the event.
The following restaurants will be participating in the 2025 GCM Food Fest:
- Adam’s Rib Co.
- Another Broken Egg
- Bagel Bakery
- Bageland
- Bambuu
- Baskin-Robbins
- Bolay
- Big Mill’s
- Brother Cookies
- Buffalo Wild Wings
- Carvel
- Charlie’s Snow Shack
- Chicken Salad Chick
- Cold Stone
- Crafty Bastards
- Culver’s
- Dave & Buster’s
- D’Lites
- Dunkin’
- Gator BTW
- Gators Den
- Gators Dockside
- Gigi’s Cup Cakes
- Insomnia Cookies
- Jeremiah’s Italian Ice
- Jersey Mike’s
- Krispy Kreme
- Las Carretas
- Linda Vista
- Sonic
- Los Pollos
- Luke’s Bagels
- Marco’s Pizza
- McAlister’s
- Metro Diner
- Mi Apa
- MidiCi
- Miller’s Ale House
- Moe’s
- Nothing Bundt Cakes
- Pampy’s
- Panda Express
- Papa John’s
- The Paper Bag
- PF Chang’s
- Piesanos
- Pomodoro Cafe
- Primo Hoagies
- Raining Berries
- Scuola
- Sweet Berries
- Tacos 352
- Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe
- Texas Roadhouse
- That Bar & Table
- Thirsty Gator
- Tortillas Tex Mex
- Tropical Smoothies
- Tyummi Bubble Tea.