The Chronicle (South Tyneside and Durham)
Food festival will offer a taste of the region
NEW EVENT IS UNVEILED TO TICKLE FAMILIES’ TASTEBUDS
A HUGE Food and Drink Festival has been announced for Newcastle following three years of work to get it off the ground.
The festival, which is a popular annual feature in Leeds, will take place for the first time in the city, taking over Exhibition Park over the early May bank holiday weekend.
An enormous culinary adventure is set to tick all boxes on the menu, including local input, family focus and a charity partner.
The inaugural event will be a celebration of diverse cuisines, local flavours and talented artisans. It is also joining forces for its May 4-6 run with the mental health charity Tyneside and Northumberland Mind, having already raised almost £100,000 for Mind charities across the wider north.
Event director Michael Johnston said: “We have been working on this behind the scenes for the past three years and it feels great to get it over the line. Exhibition Park is the perfect place for this event and we’re incredibly excited for the early May Bank Holiday.”
There will be music too, with up to 18 acts set to take to the stage during the festival’s run, while the big focus will be upon food. Around eight hours of live demonstrations will take place over the weekend.
Local flavours and small businesses will be showcased too and an Artisan Market will sell regional specialities and the likes of fine cheeses and brownies.
A Street Food Arena will be out to take visitors on a wider global culinary journey, ranging from British favourites to Middle Eastern delicacies and among the treats on sale will be the likes of halloumi fries; Pad Thai and churros.
There will also be plenty of independent bars serving all sorts of drinks such as craft ales, specialty ciders and spirits.
Family attractions will include live entertainment, six performing arts shows a day, free children’s activities and inflatables and there will be deckchairs and seating dotted around the whole site for people to chill out and relax.
Festival manager Nikki Orrell stressed the regional focus of the weekend and said: “We are thrilled to bring a celebration of world cuisine to Newcastle reflecting the vibrant diversity of the city. The food will be delicious and the large Artisan Market will be packed full of local delights.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for local traders and small businesses to showcase their produce.”
Tickets are on sale now for the festival and there are currently early bird options available, with day tickets costing £5.95 for adults and £3.45 for under-16s (under-fives have free entry). A £1 booking fee applies.
The tickets will allow entry to the festival any time between 10am and 5pm, with the event finishing at 6pm. There is also an option to make a £1.50 charity donation, with all proceeds going to Mind Tyneside & Northumberland. To buy tickets see here.
This is a fantastic opportunity for local traders and small businesses to showcase their products
Nikki Orrell