Explore the top British food and drink celebrations going on across the UK this summer.
Loch Lomond Food and Drink Festival
3
– 4
September 2011
Admission free
This superb free event includes a variety of food and drink stalls and a cookery marquee hosted by Ian McCulloch with cookery demos and fun audience participatory cook-offs, all on the shore of Loch Lomond, Scotland.
The Great Dorset Chilli Festival, Kingston Lacy
13
-14
August 2011
Tickets: £6 adult (£7.50 on the gate)
£2.50 children aged 6-15yrs (£3 on gate)
£14.50 family ticket
Children aged 5 and under go free.
Presenting stalls from some of the surprising range of chilli farmers to be found in the South West as well as producers of delicious condiments and chilli orientated foods, the Great Dorset Chilli Festival is a celebration of exotic cultivation in rural Britain.
26
-29
August 2011
Tickets: prices apply to individual events throughout the festival, see website for more details
The festival to go to for celebrity chefs! This year includes James Martin, Gino D’Acampo, Michael Caines and the Hairy Bikers all of whom will be providing cookery demos over the weekend.
17
- 18
September 2011
Tickets: 5 Venue Stroller Ticket (includes free Festival Programme): Sat £7/ Sun £6/ Weekend £11 (adult)
Children free
*Various other events will be ticketed separately – check website for more details
Vintage tents, children’s cooking classes, food ranting, cupcake queens, artisan cheese and wine markets, a brewery yard and fish market are just some of the things that set this festival apart for its huge variety.
Great British Cheese Festival, Cardiff
24
– 25
September 2011
Tickets: £8.75 adult
£7.50 conc.
£27 family
Children under 5- free. Group bookings – 1 free ticket/10 purchased
*Get a £3.50 voucher when you purchase adult/conc. tickets in advance
Taste the diversity of British cheese as well as a selection of beers, wines and ciders. Fancy a tutorial? Learn everything there is to know about cheeses with the festivals masterclasses and demonstrations
24
– 25
September 2011
Tickets: £5 adult
£8 adult weekend
Children under 14 go free with paying adult
This festival features a producers market showcasing the best regional food, a Restaurant Zone, Beer n’ Bangers Marquee plus the favourite Theatre of local talent but definitely do not miss Taste Cumbria’s Secret Restaurant – the latest concept in guerrilla dining – an opportunity to sample a gourmet 4-course meal from 4 Cumbrian Michelin-starred chefs.
4
-7
August, 2011
Tickets: noon – 4pm £6 adult
4pm-10pm £10 adult
£12.50 One Day Flexi Pass
Half-price tickets for children accompanied by an adult and free admission for children under 5.
Held on the Great Lawn in Belfast’s Botanic Gardens, the festival combines a medley of foods on the ‘restaurant boulevard’ with great entertainment from the live music stage.
25
September 2011
Booking essential £20
Enjoy a full day of mushroom picking, eating and rambling during the fungi harvest of Crom.
20
-21
August 2011
Tickets: £8 adult
£5 children
£7 seniors
£22 family ticket
Now in its 26
year, the Garlic Festival organisers promise the 2011 festival will be its best one yet! Considering the Isle of Wight Garlic Farm just won Gold this year at Hampton Court for the seventh year in a row, they’ve got a lot to celebrate.
30
September – 9
October 2011
Exmoor plays host to a series of food and drink events including the Exmoor Real Ale and Cider Trail, cookery workshops, tasting days, local produce halls, family events and much more.