It’s hard to believe but ten years ago Atlanta didn’t have its own food festival.

Dale DeSena filled the void by founding Taste of Atlanta, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year and will be held at Tech Square in Midtown on Saturday, Oct. 22 and Sunday, Oct. 23.

The goals of the two-day street festival are to help local restaurants lure new customers, provide a fun forum for food education and “prove to the world that Atlanta is a great foodie town,” says DeSena. “It’s an event that can showcase the diversity of our great restaurant community and chef-driven restaurants.”

This year will feature a lineup of tastes from 80 restaurants plus demonstrations and seminars on five stages, a VIP experience featuring craft beer and wine samples and exclusive tasting tents, plus family activities and kids’ cooking competitions in the Family Food Zone. There’s also a barcraft competition, a behind-the-scenes “Inside the Food Studio” experience hosted by Tom Sullivan, and a new Global Flavors International Stage.

The activity lineup ensures there’s “something for everyone,” says DeSena.

Participating restaurants are both “neighborhood favorites and fine dining,” she says. “We work with a number of food writers in the city and patrons to determine who is invited.”

The Midtown location offers “a neighborhood community feeling,” she says. “We also wanted to make sure we’re near a MARTA station, make certain we have lots of available parking, and we wanted the location to be in wide-open streets and areas to create a more open atmosphere.”

Among the celebrity chefs who will attend is Food Network’s Aaron Sanchez of “Chopped.” “He’s doing a lot of neat things and has a cookbook coming out in October,” says DeSena. “He’ll be doing a live cooking demonstration on Saturday on our Home Plate Main Stage. But I always look at our Atlanta chefs as our rock stars—they are our celebrities! They do amazing work every day and we want to recognize and showcase what they do.”

Atlanta chefs scheduled to participate include Pura Vida Tapas’ Hector Santiago, Rosebud’s Ron Eyester, Bocado’s Todd Ginsberg, JCT Kitchen’s Ford Fry and many more.

“Last year was my first time to do it and I had an awesome time,” says Chef Fry. “It was just fun, a great success. So I’m coming back.” Last year his parmesan truffle fries with béarnaise sauce were popular with attendees. What will he serve this year? “That again and possibly some fried pies—I don’t know yet,” he says. He does know that his live cooking demonstration will be staged “Iron Chef”-style as he and No. 246’s Chef Drew Belline compete against Chefs Nick Melvin and Ron Eyester. “It will be so fun—we’ll be talking a lot of smack,” he says.

Participants vote for the “People’s Choice” taste while a panel of local food writers—including me—will judge in several categories including best appetizer and more. Three judges including Designer Mychael Knight from “Project Runway” will choose the best tent décor.

Tickets are on sale now.

TICKET INFORMATION

General admission tickets (include 10 taste coupons) are $25 in advance; $35 at the gate. Children age 13 and under receive FREE admission (excluding taste coupons) when accompanied by a paid adult.

VIP tickets (include 15 taste coupons and access to Wine+Beer+Cocktail Experience) are $75. A limited number of VIP tickets are available; the first 300 ticket holders each day receive a festival gift bag.

Taste coupons are used to purchase food from participating restaurants. Menu items are valued at one, two or three taste coupons. Additional taste coupons are sold in increments of 10 coupons for $10 or 20 coupons for $20.

Tickets are sold at locations throughout Atlanta including Cook’s Warehouse and Ticket Alternative outlets. Purchase online through Ticket Alternative at www.TasteofAtlanta.com. Advance tickets must be purchased by midnight, October 22.

For more information about Taste of Atlanta 2011:

-Sign up for the newsletter: www.tasteofatlanta.com

-Follow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tasteofatlanta

-Become a fan on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tasteofatlanta

-For a complete list of participating restaurants, visit http://tasteofatlanta.com/rests.php