Top chefs demonstrating their skills, a variety of street food, a vintage tea tent, Champagne, wine and beer masterclasses and the chilli-eating challenge are just some of the attractions visitors to this year’s Oxford Foodies Festival can look forward to.
Bakers can enjoy Candice Brown, winner of Great British Bake Off 2016, lippy in one hand and spatula in the other, cooking up a storm in the Cakes and Desserts Theatre.
The Chocolate, Cake and Dessert Village will tempt visitors with freshly baked breads, sponges, tarts, jellies and desserts giving you the opportunity to taste, decorate and learn from local experts. Afternoon tea can be enjoyed in the beautifully decorated Vintage Tea Room, where teas, handmade cakes and scones with clotted cream and jam are served on china from a tea trolley by vintage styled tea ladies and gentlemen, and vintage music for ambience.
TV presenter and chef Matt Tebutt, new Saturday Kitchen host and presenter of Channel 4’s Food Unwrapped and Drop Down Menu, will also be joining the line up in the Chef’s Theatre, see opposite page.
Other attractions include:
Drinks Theatre
Expert mixologists and sommeliers, will host a full timetable of masterclasses on wine, whisky and champagne and cheese tastings in the Drinks Theatre each day. There’s a Beer for That will be leading craft beer and food pairings, so there’s something for everyone.
Street Food Avenue
The festival attracts street food vendors from around the world, offering visitors the chance to take a culinary trip to all corners of the world. Japanese, Thai, Malaysian, Argentinian, Turkish, Indian, Korean, Mexican, French and African are just some of the flavours to feast on this summer. With everything from Crème Brulee campervans to flavours of Morocco and paella.
Artisan Producers Market
This is a fantastic opportunity for visitors to meet artisan producers, ask questions about their produce and story, and stock up on award-winning produce. With over 200 stalls to peruse at each festival, visitors will be spoilt for choice while they meander between smoked salmon tasting stands, outstanding local cheeses, melt-in-your-mouth brownies, award-winning oils and chutneys, and much, much more.
Kids Cookery School and Kids Zone
The Kids Cookery School is a chance for the whole family to join in while the children are introduced to new food and flavours from around the world. There will be fun science inspired kids cookery, experiments you can eat, making sherbet and ‘Fizz! Bang! Wallop!’ classes on how Co2 makes dough rise as they make bread bubble bombs, carbon dioxide rockets and delicious dough balls with homemade garlic butter with the kids. In addition there will be outdoor activities, simple crafts, toys, books, bouncy castles and trampolines, giant hula hoops, giant Jenga, chess and garden games. Private toilets and a nursing area will also be included.
The Art of Healthy Living in Association with Yoga Quota
Let Foodies Festival inspire you this summer with a focus on health and wellness in the Healthy Living Zone at each festival. Ask your health and fitness questions or learn delicious healthy recipes from top chefs or join a masterclass.
The zen healthy living area will be providing a daily timetable of yoga classes from 11.30-4.30 from top local yoga studios, all included with the price of your ticket.
Live Music, Restaurant Tents and Pop-Up Bars
Find out why Foodies Festival was hailed the ‘Gastronomic Glastonbury’. Enjoy the music and soak up the atmosphere with a glass of Pimms from the Giant Pimm’s Teaport, rum cocktails from the Rum Galleon Ship, gin and tonic from the Giant Gin Pot or bask in the sun atop the double-decker BarBus.
VIP in association with Borgo Molino: The Red Carpet Welcome
The Foodies Festival VIP experience will be taken to a new level in 2017, with champagne tasting sessions held in the comfort of the VIP area, complimentary glass of fizz in hand courtesy of Borgo Molino. The VIP lounge will also have a new deli and gourmet snacks area and complimentary, exclusive Foodies Festival tote bags with VIP goodies inside. Live music on the VIP acoustic music stage will add to visitors’ luxury experience in VIP and make their time at Foodies Festival all the more memorable.
