The Toast of Kayenta
Sunday, September 13, 2026 · 5:00 PM–9:00 PM
Center for the Arts at Kayenta
An Evening Under the Cliffs
The Toast of Kayenta is an outdoor evening festival of regional food and drink held at the Center for the Arts at Kayenta in Ivins, with restaurants and regional producers pouring and serving across the night. Entry is restricted to adults.
The setting does most of the work. Kayenta sits at the base of the red cliffs west of Ivins, and an evening event there in September gets the last of the light on the rock face while the temperature falls into the range that makes standing outdoors with a glass genuinely pleasant. There is no version of this held in a ballroom that would be the same event.
Where the Money Goes
This is a fundraiser, and the beneficiary is the reason the event exists rather than an afterthought. Ticket money goes back into the arts programming at the venue itself — a tighter loop than most charity events manage, since you are standing in the thing your ticket funds. The foundation runs performance and education programs there year-round, so the Toast is one night of a much longer calendar rather than a standalone gala.
The Community It Sits In
Kayenta itself is worth understanding, because it explains why an arts foundation ended up here at all. Terry Marten founded the community in 1982 and built it on a principle unusual for southern Utah at the time: work with the land instead of flattening it. No lawns, no white fences, low desert-colored buildings set among the rock and the creosote. The place selected for a certain kind of resident, and eventually those residents organized.
The art village grew out of the same impulse and now holds galleries, studios, a theater, and places to eat. The festival is the community's own institution rather than an event that rented a scenic venue.
Practical Notes
Organizers ask attendees to arrange a designated driver or a ride in advance, and that request is worth taking seriously rather than treating as boilerplate.
Bring identification even if you do not expect to be asked for it.
Evenings in September cool off substantially once the sun is behind the cliffs. Bring a layer; people consistently underdress for this one, having judged the temperature from the afternoon.
Who It Suits
Adults, people who like regional food and drink events at a scale where you can actually talk to the producers, and anyone who wants to see the Ivins and Kayenta side of the valley at its best hour. It is not a family event and does not pretend to be — the First Friday Market at the same venue is the one to bring children to.
Frequently asked questions
Is this a family event?
No. It is strictly 21 and over, and photo identification is required at the door. Families wanting an evening at the same venue should look at the First Friday Market at Kayenta instead, which is monthly and open to everyone.
Where does the money go?
To the Kayenta Arts Foundation, the nonprofit that residents formed in 2011 and that opened the Center for the Arts at Kayenta in 2017. Proceeds fund the programming in that building — which is also where the festival is held, so you are standing in what your ticket pays for.
How should I get there and back?
Arrange a ride or a designated driver before you go. This is an event built around drinking, it is a twenty-minute-plus drive from downtown St. George, and the roads back through Ivins and Santa Clara are dark and unlit. The organizers ask for this every year for good reason.
What should I wear?
Bring a layer. It is an outdoor evening event at the base of the cliffs, and the temperature drops substantially once the sun is off the rock — people routinely dress for the afternoon they left and are cold by the end of the night.
What is actually served?
Regional food and drink, with restaurants and producers from around southern Utah pouring and serving through the evening. The scale is small enough that you can talk to the people behind the tables, which is a large part of the appeal compared with a larger festival.
Why is an arts foundation running a food festival in Ivins?
Because of what Kayenta is. Terry Marten founded the community in 1982 on the principle of building with the desert rather than clearing it — no lawns, low desert-colored buildings set among the rock. Over four decades that drew residents inclined to start exactly this kind of nonprofit, and in 2011 they did. The galleries, the theater, and this festival all came out of the same place.
Address
881 Coyote Gulch CourtIvins, UT 84738