Behind the Scenes of Eat Drink SLC: My Year as the Social Media Guy

If you’re already a fan of Eat Drink SLC, chances are you’ve seen snapshots of mouthwatering bites, clinking glasses, and smiling faces flooding your feed during the event. But what you don’t always see—what I live and breathe for—is what happens before the festival gates open. This year, being behind the scenes has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my social media career.

How This Role Found Me -

I’ve always loved food, drink, local culture—and storytelling via social media. Last year, I took photos of the event for fun. This year, when Eat Drink SLC needed help with its social presence, I jumped at it! What started as managing a few posts soon grew into being the “go-to” person for everything digital: planning content, coordinating with restaurants and beverage partners, and capturing the essence of the event in real time.

A Day in the Life (or Many Days)

Being the main social media person means juggling a dozen small tasks at once:

• Curating and scheduling posts leading up to the event: features on partner restaurants, behind-the-scenes teasers, spotlighting artists, etc.

• Coordinating with partners to get high-quality photos, menus, drink lists, and stories to share.

• During the festival: live stories, reels, candid moments, capturing crowd energy, and responding to engagement in real time.

• Handling unexpected surprises: weather, schedule changes, or last-minute vendor swaps.

• After the event: recaps, highlight reels, filling in the gaps, thanking sponsors, and winding down the campaign.

  
  

Some unexpected joys: stumbling upon a chef’s impromptu demo, catching a behind-the-scenes dance performance, or watching someone’s face light up when they taste something extraordinary for the first time. Those are moments you can’t fully plan for—but I am always ready to capture!

What I’ve Learned Behind the Curtains

Working in the backend has given me a new appreciation for how many moving parts must align to make an event like Eat Drink SLC feel seamless for attendees. A few takeaways:

• Relationships matter. The bonds with restaurants, beverage partners, artists, and sponsors become deeply personal. You aren’t just promoting them — you’re collaborating.

• Flexibility is essential. No matter how tight your content calendar is, you’ll always need room to pivot on the fly!

• Understanding motive changes your lens. As an attendee, you might just see “good food + music + drink.” As an organizer, you see staffing, permits, timelines, logistics—and that deepens your respect for every little thing that “goes right.”

• Storytelling is everywhere. Whether it’s a bartender pouring a craft cocktail, a local chef plating a dish, or a dancer rehearsing before go-time — there’s narrative in the small moments.

Why It’s Been So Fun

• Creative freedom. Yes, there are brand guidelines and deadlines, but there’s also room to experiment with formats (video, reels, stories), aesthetics, voice, and in-the-moment spontaneity.

• Community immersion. I get to talk with chefs, distillers, artists, community leaders—people I might otherwise never cross paths with.

• Immediate feedback. Seeing likes, comments, reposts, and direct messages in real time—it’s energizing when people resonate with the content you’ve poured time into.

• Pride in ownership. When someone says, “Hey, I saw your post about that cocktail — I want to try it,” you feel a direct line between your work and someone’s experience.

Come Along With Me next Year!

Over the next months, I’ll be posting previews: chef spotlights, drink features, behind-the-scenes buildouts, and even some missteps (because yes—they happen!). If you’re reading and you love food, drink, arts, and community—follow along, tag your friends, and make your plans to be there in person.

Thank you to the Eat Drink SLC team for trusting me with this role, to all the partners for their collaboration, and to the community for supporting our local flavor.