New Attractions, Continued Traditions

For more than a decade, celebrated chefs from around the state have gathered on Jekyll Island to compete for the coveted title of “Georgia’s Best Shrimp & Grits.” The annual event that brings them here, now in its fourteenth year, earned a significant award of its own. The Jekyll Island Shrimp & Grits Festival was crowned “Best Festival in the Southeast” at the Southeast Festival and Events Association’s Kaleidoscope Awards earlier this year. It’s also been featured in numerous publications, including National Geographic, adding to the growing popularity of vacationers and visitors to the Golden Isles.

The Shrimp & Grits Festival, taking place September 20-22, is still centered on the Southern seafood favorite, but has grown to include much more. A new addition to this year’s line-up is the Go for the Grits 5K race, which is billed as “one of the fastest and most scenic 5Ks in all of Georgia.” The September 22 race begins at 8:00 a.m. on the Jekyll Island Airport runway and takes runners on a course shaded by majestic live oaks into the island’s National Historic Landmark District. The first 200 runners will receive a take-home bag of grits as they cross the finish line. And once there, all competitors are rewarded with early access to the festival before it opens to the public.

There are plenty of other ways to burn off those extra helpings of shrimp and grits at this year’s event. “Shrimp & Grits is a walking festival,” according to Nancy Kring-Rowan, director of events at the Jekyll Island Authority and lead organizer of the festival. She and her team have been measuring distances around the festival and will deploy new wayfinding signage indicating the number of steps between festival attractions, so festival goers can map out their activity. Those who need just a bit more motivation can enter the Workout Anytime Brunswick Step Challenge and compete for memberships and other prizes. Whether they enter the challenge or not, attendees will definitely get their steps in with so much to see and do. In addition to the 5K, attendees can experience a Shrimp & Grits Dolphin Tour presented by Jekyll Island Boat Tours, an escape room presented by the Georgia National Guard, and The Soccer Collies, a team of soccer-playing border collies, all making their Shrimp & Grits Festival debuts.  

The Georgia Grown Alley focuses on the state’s agricultural treasures with 43 vendors offering handmade provisions, baked goods, seasonings, honey, grits, spirits, essential oils, soaps, and more. In addition, nearly 100 artists working in pottery, glass, jewelry, painting, photography, textiles, and woodworking have been selected for the festival’s Artists Market. “The quality of the artwork at this year’s market will be exceptional,” Kring-Rowan said, “This year, Sunshine Artist Magazine, America's premier art and craft show publication, named Shrimp & Grits one of the top 200 arts and crafts markets in the United States.” Dozens of artists of the musical variety will also perform throughout the festival on four stages. Younger guests will flock to the Kids Zone, where a variety of inflatable slides, bounce houses, and agility games await.    

The best way to experience all the festival has to offer, according to Kring-Rowan, is as a VIP.

While entry to the Shrimp & Grits Festival is free, a limited number of tickets available for purchase online allow access to the Atlanta Magazine VIP Lounge. This “exclusive festival retreat” offers a host of perks including on-site festival parking; access to an elegant private area when you can keep you cool and enjoy unlimited beer and wine, and non-alcoholic beverages, provided by Southern Eagle Distributing and Coca-Cola, catered meals and snacks, phone-charging stations, and a private, air-conditioned bathroom. VIP tickets also include entry to Craft Brew Fest, a “festival within a festival,” sponsored by Southern Eagle Distributing. Tickets for Brew Fest, which can be purchased separately, include 10 tastings, a souvenir glass, snacks, a big screen TV to view the weekend games, live music, and private restrooms.“VIP Lounge and Craft Brew are literally hot tickets,” Kring-Rowan said. “Demand is high, so we encourage people to buy theirs early.”

Even with so many new festival activities being added and old favorites returning, our beloved coastal delicacy Wild Georgia shrimp remains at the heart of the Shrimp & Grits Festival. Chef Liz Morris of Statesboro’s Eagle Creek Brewing Company will return to defend her Best Shrimp & Grits title, squaring off against noted chefs from around the state in Georgia’s Best Shrimp & Grits Cooking Competition, presented by Quaker. The 2016 champion, Chef Andrew Smith of Atlanta’s West Egg Café, is also returning after finishing second last year, in what’s sure to be a thrilling rematch with Morris. Eight other contenders span from as far away as the North Georgia Mountains. Cooking will truly become a spectator sport as the chefs bring their singular creations to life using fresh Georgia shrimp, all in front of the festival audience. The competition will be judged by a trio of culinary luminaries: award-winning chef and cookbook author Chef Virginia Willis, Executive Chef for the Georgia Departments of Agriculture and Economic Development Holly Chute, and Chef Todd White, department chair and instructor at Albany Technical College’s Culinary Department.

Elsewhere, there’s delicious food everywhere you turn from the Georgia Grown Alley to the main lawn food court, where 15 vendors will serve Latin cuisine, pizza, chicken and waffles, frozen yogurt, adult ice pops, and more. Shrimp and grits specialists, including local establishments like the Jekyll Island Club Resort, will be serving the festival’s signature dish on the Riverfront Lawn, along with other crowd-pleasing favorites. On the opening night of the festival, guests can purchase a sample of shrimp and grits from each vendor for half price and help a worthy cause. “We have a fun twist to the People’s Choice event with the help of the Jekyll Island Rotary Club. On Friday Sept. 20 from 5-8:30 p.m. on the Riverfront Lawn, our guests can purchase a half price portion of shrimp and grits and vote for their favorite recipe for only $1 per vote. The Riverfront Lawn vendor with the most money in their jar by 8:30 p.m. will win the People’s Choice Award. All proceeds from this competition will go to the Jekyll Island Rotary Club.”

According to Jekyll Island Authority Events Coordinator Erin Evors, the festival’s success is a credit to the more than 300 JIA employees and 200 volunteers who pull together and work tirelessly to produce delightful and delicious experience for guests. “They are passionate about Jekyll Island. They love greeting first-time visitors and welcoming back familiar faces to our community,” she said.

After 2019, the Shrimp & Grits festival will be on the move. It’s not changing locations, just dates, to become a November event going forward, when the weather is cooler. The 2020 Shrimp & Grits Festival will be held November 6-8. It’s never too early to put it on your calendar! For more information about the Jekyll Island Shrimp & Grits Festival or to purchase tickets, visit jekyllisland.com/shrimpgrits.