CHEFS SERVE ONLINE TREAT:
Online tips in revamped annual food event
A POPULAR food and drink festival is moving online this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The annual event is usually hosted at Westbridge Park in Stone and attracts crowds of more than 20,000 visitors.
But due to Covid-19 restrictions, this year’s festival will be a virtual one.
This Saturday and Sunday, there will be online cookery demonstrations from local chefs – showcasing mouthwatering seasonal food and techniques.
They were filmed at Joule’s Brewery’s Crown Wharf development as lead sponsors of the festival. Lexus Stoke has also sponsored the demonstration kitchen after the live event proved such a success in 2019.
The videos will be showcased on the Stone Food and Drink Festival website and social media channels.
Festival chairman, Richard Stevens, said: “We’re naturally hugely disappointed that we won’t be running the main event on Westbridge Park this October, but wanted to bring some of the festival vibe to our fans via our online platforms and smaller live events in and around town.
“Hopefully, local businesses will benefit from the support and we’d like to thank sponsors Joule’s Brewery and Lexus Stoke for their support in this new venture.
“We’d like to thank all the chefs who joined us on this journey and the quality of dishes they created is superb – we hope people have a lot of fun ‘cooking along’ with them at home, but equally that this inspires people to get out and support local restaurants, pubs, shops and producers.
“We can’t wait to be back with the live event in 2021 and are already planning some exciting new additions to the festival.”
Some of the chefs demonstrating include Jake Lowndes of Little Seeds, Allan Jones – previously head chef at Keele Hall and now heading up his private chef venture ‘A la carte at home’ – and James Sherwin of Whitchurch’s Wild Shropshire restaurant.
Two smaller live events will still take place at Westbridge Park as planned – the Stone Farmers’ Market on Saturday and FEAST Stone Street Food Takeaway on Sunday.
Stone Farmers’ Market originally started as part of the festival but was so successful Stafford Borough Council took it on and ran it the first Saturday of every month.
The market was usually held on the High Street, but has been moved to Westbridge Park since midsummer to comply with social distancing guidelines.
Street food extravaganza FEAST Stone started last year in Stone’s High Street and will be held at Westbridge Park on the Sunday of the festival, following strict Covid-19 safety measures. Both physical events are free to attend.