Cedar Point Barrels & Bites: What to Expect This Summer
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Cedar Point Amusement Park is hosting Barrels & Bites on select dates this June. This seasonal event brings chef-crafted food pairings, beer, bourbon, wine, and live entertainment to the Frontier Trail. It replaces Frontier Festival, the food-focused summer event Cedar Point hosted in recent years.
If you are visiting Cedar Point in June, this is one of the seasonal events to plan around.
What Is Barrels and Bites?
Barrels & Bites is a seasonal tasting event at Cedar Point featuring chef-crafted food pairings alongside beer, bourbon, and wine. The event takes place along the Frontier Trail, which connects the Main Midway to Frontier Town.
Guests can move between tasting locations along the Frontier Trail, enjoy live bluegrass, piano, and jazz performances, browse artisan shops, and participate in interactive activities throughout the evening. Alcohol purchases are available to guests 21 or older with a valid ID.
When Does Barrels and Bites Take Place?
Barrels and Bites runs on select dates from June 5 through June 28.
The event runs daily from 4 PM to park closing and does not operate on Tuesdays. Most of the activity happens later in the day, so you can plan rides earlier and spend time here in the evening.
What to Expect at Barrels and Bites
Barrels & Bites combines chef-crafted food pairings, regional beer, bourbon, and wine tastings, live entertainment, interactive activities, and local artisan shopping along Frontier Trail. Whether you’re a foodie, craft beer enthusiast, bourbon fan, or wine lover, the event is designed to let you sample a variety of flavors at your own pace.
During the event, you can expect:
- chef-crafted food pairings and tasting portions
- beer, bourbon, and wine flights at multiple tasting locations
- bluegrass, piano, and jazz performances throughout Frontier Trail
- interactive activities, artisan shopping, and make-your-own experiences like custom hats, candles, and perfume blending
The menu features a variety of chef-crafted small plates and desserts spread across several tasting locations. Highlights include smoked pork belly sliders, bourbon BBQ brisket burnt ends, garlic steak bite skewers, honey and herb-brined smoked wings, braised beef short rib ragout over crispy sage butter gnocchi, grilled flatbread pizza, mini crab cakes, flaming strawberry shortcake, cheesecake bites with honey-roasted fruits, white and dark chocolate-dipped strawberries, chocolate stout mousse, and mini berry tarts.
Beverage tastings are available throughout the event, including dedicated beer, bourbon, and wine flight locations. Each tasting stop pairs its drinks with chef-crafted food items designed to complement the beverages.
Beyond the food and drinks, you can create a Paint By Numbers mural, play Wine Bottle Drop or Wine Bottle Pull, browse Brim & Ember Trading Co., Frontier Craft Co., the Candy Shoppe, and the Glassblowing Studio, or create a custom burned hat, hand-poured candle, or signature fragrance to take home. An exclusive Barrels & Bites event T-shirt is also available during the event.
Live entertainment includes a rotating lineup of bluegrass, piano parlor classics, and lively jazz performances that create a relaxed Frontier Trail atmosphere throughout the evening.
Food and beverage service ends one hour before park closing, and menu items are subject to change throughout the event.
Barrels and Bites Hotel Packages
Cedar Point offers hotel packages tied to the event that bundle park access with an overnight stay.
These packages typically include:
- overnight accommodations at a Cedar Point resort
- one-day park admission
- free after 4 PM admission on the day of arrival
- hotel parking
- early entry for eligible resort guests and Prestige Passholders
This option can make sense if you want extra time in the park without purchasing another full-price day.
Plan A Trip To Cedar Point For Barrels & Bites
Few amusement parks are as good as Cedar Point, and Barrels & Bites offers one of the park’s most unique seasonal experiences. If you enjoy trying new food, sampling craft beverages, and taking in live entertainment, it’s well worth planning a June visit around the event. If you want more than just rides, this is one of the better times to visit.
You can also plan future trips around other popular events like Halloweekends and Boardwalk Nights, which are some of the park’s biggest seasonal offerings.
