A ‘gastronomic Glastonbury’ hits Cambridge next month, bringing a long weekend of amazing food, entertainment and live music to Parker’s Piece from 28 to 30 June. One of the biggest events of its kind in the country, Foodies Festival attracts more than 25,000 visitors to its run of events. It visits nine venues across the UK, including Brighton, Edinburgh and Oxford, between May and August. For the first time ever, Cambridge is being added to that list – and our mouths are already watering at the feast of deliciousness in store!
Transforming Parker’s Piece into a foodie bazaar, the event features more than 200 exhibitors and award-winning artisan producers, a street food village, a kids’ cookery school, a healthy living area and more.
You’ll also be able to watch culinary masters at work in the Chefs Theatre, picking up tricks of the trade and recipe ideas. Local star chefs on the line-up include Midsummer House’s Daniel Clifford, Parker’s Tavern’s Tristan Welch and Vanderlyle’s Alex Rushmer. Eva Humphries – the brains behind Wholefood Warrior, a platform that aims to educate people on health and nutrition and encourage better lifestyle choices – is also making an appearance. Baking fans, meanwhile, should make a beeline for the Cakes & Desserts Theatre to meet familiar faces from The Great British Bake Off.
Once you’ve had your share of sweet treats, mosey over to the Drinks Theatre for a variety of masterclasses on wine, beer and more. Or why not grab a cocktail from the giant Pimm’s teapot or a drink from the vegan beer tent? The dog arena, which will be doling out prizes for categories including best lookalike, is definitely worth a visit if you want to meet some handsome hounds.
For some hands-on fun, there are workshops on midsummer cupcakes, psychedelic meringues and more, and after a day of feasting, you can relax on the grass and enjoy some poptastic tunes at the music stage. Scouting for Girls will be entertaining the crowd, along with Cambridge group Indietones and dozens more top local bands.
In addition to a being a great day out, Foodies Festival also raises funds for UK-wide homelessness charity, Crisis. For every ticket sold, the festival makes a donation to the cause, and there will be merchandise on sale at the event to give a further boost to the total, too.
Festival director, Sue Hitchen, says: “This year’s festival once again combines our two favourite things, music and food, and it’s going to be bigger and better than ever. We’ve made sure our visitors get the best in terms of star chefs and music acts, and this will create a brilliant weekend for all the family.” She adds: “I’m also delighted to have Musicians Against Homelessness on board with us once again, and to be able to donate much-needed funds to such a worthy cause in Crisis. Through music, we are also helping to raise awareness of the plight of homeless people.”
Tickets, including VIP packages, are now on sale.
