Annual Rhode Island PBS Food and Wine Event Brings Celebrity Chef to Rhody
PBS chef Mary Ann Esposito is the guest of honor at this year's Uncorking the Future wine-and-food-focused fundraising event for Rhode Island PBS and the Public's Radio.
PBS Chef MaryAnn Esposito.
Mark your calendars! Rhode Island PBS and the Public’s Radio are hosting their annual fundraising event, Uncorking the Future, at the end of the month — and it’s your chance to support the merger and the importance of local public broadcasting with a festive night of wining and dining. The event is part of the Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau’s (PWCVB) Providence Culinary Collective, and it will take place on Friday, March 28 with a VIP reception at 5 p.m., followed by general admission at 6 p.m. at the WaterFire Arts Center.
The event features PBS chef Mary Ann Esposito who will join Rhode Island PBS and The Public’s Radio as the event’s celebrity guest. VIP ticket holders will enjoy an exclusive pre-event reception with Esposito from 5 to 6 p.m., followed by a book signing open to all attendees. Her book, Ciao Italia: Plant, Harvest, Cook! and Ciao Italia: My Lifelong Food Adventures in Italy, will be available for purchase at the event. The VIP event includes oysters from Matunuck Oyster Bar, a raw bar from Tony’s Seafood and a grazing table from Just Ellen’s Catering & Events. For the main event, local restaurants will be on site with tastings, and there will be carefully curated selections of both domestic and international wines, sourced from local distributors, wine stores and private contributors.
Co-hosts Ashley Erling, the director of local content and executive producer of “The Rhode Show,” and iHeartMedia Providence’s program director and co-host of NOW 93.3’s “Doug and Jenn Morning Show,” Doug Palmieri will be keeping the fun rolling all night long.
It is a night to celebrate the importance of public broadcasting and the community that makes it possible. Uncorking the Future is the organization’s largest fundraising event. The evening’s theme, inspired by metamorphosis, will celebrate the merging of Rhode Island PBS and The Public’s Radio, a historic decision that was approved by Attorney General Peter Neronha in April 2024. Guests will also have the chance to browse works from artists featured in the RI PBS original series ART inc. and Artscape in the WaterFire Arts Center gallery. Attendees and the community will have the opportunity to explore the curated work of artists profiled in both series from Thurs., March 27-Sun., April 27, 2025.
Head to ripbs.org for tickets, on sale now! All guests must be ages twenty-one and older. Tickets are $150 for VIP and $100 for general admission.
