The 10 Best Food Festivals In The UK

Whoever falls into the trap of thinking British cuisine is boring or bland clearly hasn’t attended one of the country’s many food festivals where local producers, innovative recipes and adventurous chefs gather to prove there’s more to English eats than meat and two veg. We’ve lined up some of the best events on the UK food festival calendar, from local events like the Pommery Dorset Seafood Festival and Isle of Wight Garlic Festival to star-studded culinary weekenders like The Big Feastival.

1. Taste of London

Market, British

A must-do on any dedicated foodie’s calendar, Taste of London is a deliciously diverse festival taking place in Regent’s Park each June that has spawned a number of sister events across the globe in cities including Toronto, Sydney and Paris. Alongside over 40 of London’s best restaurants serving up signature small plates, the five-day long Taste of London also features live demonstrations from celebrity chefs like Monica Galetti and Marco Pierre White, hands-on food and drink pairing masterclasses and artisan food shopping at the Small Producers’ Market.

2. Loch Lomond Food & Drink Festival

Bar, Restaurant, Moroccan, Mexican, Japanese, Italian

First held on the bonnie banks of Scotland’s second largest loch in 2005, the Loch Lomond Food & Drink Festival now attracts an average of 30,000 gourmets each year. There’s fun for the entire family with cookery demos and classes, foraging and bush craft sessions and the annual haggis eating competition, while adult festival-goers can grab a deck chair at its resident, loch-side Beach Bar with a refreshing Scottish real ale or two. While Scottish products, producers and vendors are the focus, think Loch Lomond wild venison and succulent smoked seafood from the award-winning Argyll Smokery, plenty of cuisines are represented from Mexican and Moroccan to Italian and Japanese.

3. Aldeburgh Food and Drink Festival

Bakery, British

Now in its 11th edition, the Aldeburgh Food and Drink Festival is one of the UK’s most raved about food events and takes place at the charming Snape Maltings arts and retail complex on the banks of the River Alde. The focus is hyper-local, paying homage to Suffolk’s flourishing food and drink scene with over 100 stalls selling local products and eats, including taste wares from the likes of the popular Pump Street Bakery and Newlands Cheese Straws. There are also two cookery demo stages featuring a host of local and visiting chefs, followed by two weeks of fringe festivities like farm walks, workshops and meet-the-producer events.

4. Abergavenny Food Festival

Market, British

Hailed by Welsh journalist and Observer features writer as the ‘Glastonbury of food festivals’, Abergavenny Food Festival is Wales’ biggest, best-loved foodie event. Taking place in the pretty Monmouthshire market town since 1999, the festival has won a host of awards in its 18-year history and today attracts an average of 30,000 visitors and over 200 of the country’s best food and drink producers. Masterclasses, food markets, tastings and chef demos all feature, but one of the festival’s most popular events are its evening parties, taking place at Abergavenny Castle, they include live music, street food and a dazzling fireworks display.

Vegfest

We’ve covered the carnivore-friendly events on the food festival circuit, so now here’s one for the vegans and vegetarians, Vegfest, one of Europe’s biggest and best vegan festivals. Founded in Bristol by Tom Barford, the man behind organic hemp company Yaoh, the festival has since expanded to include Brighton, London and Glasgow too. By day, attendants can sample grub from dozens of vendors such as Brighton’s Loving Hut Vegan Café and organic, vegan-friendly craft beer producers Pitfield Brewery, get handy culinary tips at live cookery demos and learn more about veganism through talks on nutrition, health and lifestyle. And at night, there’s plenty of live music to look forward to.