Maryland’s cheesiest food festival to make a return

Mac and cheese with Ruby's in Bowie

The secret to a good mac and cheese? A lot of cheese, a lot of heat and a lot of love.

BETHESDA, Md. - It doesn’t get much feta than this. The Maryland Mac and Cheese Festival is just around the corner.

The festival takes place June 29-30 at Power Plant Live in Baltimore and features over 40 different styles of cheesy goodness. Over 15 of Maryland’s top mac and cheese vendors will be in attendance. Vendors will have the chance to compete for various awards, such as Best Tasting and Most Unique Mac and Cheese.

Guests also have the chance to compete. The festival will host a mac and cheese eating contest, a competition to see who can hold a can of whiz the longest and a cheese fries eating contest for guests to test their mettle as well as their dairy tolerance. Other attractions, such as a cheese fry bar, a giant craft beer garden, live music and an axe-throwing expo, are also available to attendees.

The festival will sell voucher sheets, giving guests the opportunity to sample multiple kinds of mac and cheeses, from smooth and creamy to crunchy with breadcrumbs. The sheets include five vouchers for $10. Other vendors will serve funnel cakes, cotton candy, ice cream and hot chocolate.

Tickets are on sale now. Kids ten and under are free after 2:00 p.m. Guests can choose between general admission or VIP access, giving them two-hour early access to the festival at noon and all-you-can-eat mac and cheese up to 2:00 p.m.