A TASTY MENU OF TREATS AT FOOD FESTIVAL

A POLISH beer garden and a ‘Cocktail Bay’ will be adding to the attractions at Sunderland Food & Drink Festival which will be back this summer with a new menu of treats.

The event, hosted in the town centre around Keel Square, High Street West and Market Square, will take on a worldwide flavour this June with a range of cuisine on offer from as far afield as the Caribbean, Europe and Afghanistan. There will be plenty of local producers in the mix during its June 23-25 run, alongside a music programme including Take That cover group Re-Take That.

Local favourite Sam Lavery, the former X-Factor star turned Capital Drive Time DJ, will also be among those performing live at the event whose family-friendly programme will include arts, crafts, games and walkabout characters to entertain children too. Food, however, will be at the heart of the festival and more than 50 traders have already signed up to take part.

The pop-ups will be selling a huge range of international foods, including German bratwurst, Singapore noodles, Polish kielbasa, Greek gyros and Spanish patatas bravas and paella alongside street food from France, India and Afghanistan plus carvery meats, chillies, gourmet burgers and vegan loaded fries. Sweet treats will include crepes, bubble waffles, fudge and coconut macaroons.

A mix of drinks will be available from the festival’s Cocktail Bay bar and the Polish beer garden will be serving a range of ales. Other festival attractions will include stalls selling the likes of South American handicrafts, Turkish Lamps and North African wooden ornaments and stainless steel jewellery, all adding to the international vibe.

Sharon Appleby, chief executive of Sunderland BID, which is creating the festival with Sunderland City Council, said of the upcoming event: “It’s possibly the most varied and cosmopolitan culinary event we’ve ever staged. Sunderland has a growing and very welldeserved reputation when it comes to food and restaurants and this festival will be a riot of new flavours and dishes - with a side dish of superb entertainment.”

Coun John Price, cabinet member for Vibrant City, added: “There’s plenty to look forward to in Sunderland this summer, and the Food Festival promises to be another highlight.”