This year at New York Fashion Week, designers and brands kept showgoers fed—and not just by their new collections. From boxes of popcorn at CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund nominee Emily Dawn Long’s screening-party NYFW debut, to sea salt dark chocolate at Kallmeyer (and bonus points for chilled water!), to classic bar snacks at Coach, snacks and drinks were a star of the shows.
While food might not be the first thing you think of when you hear “fashion week,” culinary offerings have increasingly become a flashy fixture at shows, presentations, and parties. For some, they’re a form of edible decor; the more Instagrammable, the better. The food becomes yet another way for a house to express its vision. Take The Row, for example, which gave guests boxes of individually wrapped cherries and blackberries at Paris Fashion Week earlier this year.
Last year, Gwyneth Paltrow’s Gwyn presentation featured zucchini carved with the brand’s logo. This year, the motif returned—but this time, it was carved into a giant block of butter, and served alongside fresh vegetables, figs, and peaches with cream.
For many, the beauty of food is the cherry on top of a simple reality: People are running around, and they need to eat. (If you’re wondering where the fashion crowd goes for a sit-down meal between shows, we asked 18 industry insiders). In the spirit of snacking, here are bite-sized dispatches from some of the Vogue team’s favorite foods at fashion week.
Coach
Photo: Taylor Lashley
There’s no better feeling than walking into your last show of the day, irritable and hungry, only to discover that snacks are being served. And that’s exactly what happened at the Coach show this season. Stepping into the venue felt more like entering a swanky cocktail lounge, with bar snacks and cocktails at the ready. Quite the way to kick off the week of shows ahead. —Taylor Lashley, senior manager, social media
Colleen Allen
Photo: Hannah Jackson
