How To Hack Eating And Drinking At NYCWFF 2016

Feast like a pro at the New York City Wine and Food Festival, tickets on sale tonight

Like a concert tour for Beyoncé and Kanye, it's time to mark your calendar for a big release. Tickets to the ninth annual New York City Wine and Food Festival go on sale at midnight, and it's bigger and better than ever before.

New events, like Best of Brooklyn with Action Bronson and Porchetta, Pigs and Pints hosted by Mario Batali, are making their debuts along with all-time favorites, like Rock & Roll Sushi with Masaharu Morimoto and the Blue Moon Burger Bash.

Now, not all of us are born with the hawkeyes of paparazzi to spot celeb chefs and the endless belly of hot dog champ Kobayashi necessary for this food free-for-all. So we're sharing our best tips for making the most of NYCWFF. Read on:

Do your research. If you know who's there, you can map out your eating itinerary ahead of time. Nothing would be more disappointing than realizing you missed the food-world equivalent of Justin Bieber after you're already home nursing your food coma.

Eat dessert first. Oftentimes, all the sweets are gone by the time you hit the dessert bars. Avoid this sugar crash by grabbing a few nibbles right when you get in or stock up ahead of time (see tip number five).

Stay hydrated. When there's beer, wine and craft cocktails flowing, it's easy to overlook basic, boring water. Huge mistake. Carry around a water bottle to keep you quenched and cool the whole time.

Don't go it alone. There are two reasons for this: One, a pal can hold your drink while you eat, and you can do the same for your friend; two, you don't want to be the person standing in a corner alone stuffing food in your face.

Anticipate leftovers. No shame in that Tupperware game. Tote a larger bag with a couple plastic containers (don't go crazy) to bring back anything you can't finish but will travel well, like a few doughnuts for the road.