Another fabulous food festival is set to tickle the taste buds of St Albans residents this summer.
Dubbed the 'Gastro-Glastonbury', Foodies Festival will visit Hertfordshire for the first time in June, serving up a star-studded line-up of celebrity chefs and chart-topping music stars.
The UK’s biggest touring celebrity food and music festival series will arrive at Oaklands College, St Albans, from Friday, June 2 to Sunday, June 4. There are 13 Foodies planned for across the country in 2023.
Topping the St Albans music bill will be The Masked Singer winner Natalie Imbruglia on the Saturday and Scouting For Girls the following day.
An ABBA tribute will headline the festival's opening ‘Cocktails, Cabaret and Cake’ party on the Friday.
The three-day event will also feature live cooking demonstrations from top chefs drawn from the ranks of TV’s MasterChef, Great British Bake Off and Great British Menu, plus top-rated Michelin-starred and award-winning chefs.
Foodies director Sue Hitchen said: “We are thrilled to bring our celebration of amazing food, drink and entertainment to St Albans, and we are proud to support local artisan producers and restaurants.
“We’ve all had a difficult few years, so to help keep things affordable festival prices have been frozen for the third year running – even though our stars and features get bigger and better every year. We offer a great value day out for families and friends.”
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The first star names announced to appear in the live cooking theatres include Great British Bake Off 2022 winner Syabira Yusoff, MasterChef champions Tom Rhodes and Dhruv Baker, ITV's Love Island cast members, chefs and authors, John and Tony Alberti (The Alberti Twins), MasterChef: The Professionals finalist Scott Barnard, from Michelin recommended Crockers Tring, Bake Off favourite Jurgen Krauss, and MasterChef finalist Madeeha Qureshi.
Syabira Yusoff said: “I’m looking forward to sharing my passion and cooking in-front of a live audience on the Foodies Festival tour.
"I’ll be baking some of my favourite cakes, sharing recipie ideas and talking about my amazing experience on The Great British Bake Off."
For the fifth year running, the festival is supporting Musicians Against Homelessness (MAH), with tickets raising money for UK-wide homelessness charity Crisis.
MAH founder Emma Rule said: “We are thrilled to be back at Foodies with our music stage and fantastic line-up of artists, raising much-needed funds during these challenging times.”
The musical feast is just as sumptuous as the menu of chefs, with multi-talented double Brit awarded songstress and actress Natalie Imbruglia, best known for hit Torn, and platinum-selling She's So Lovely festival favourites Scouting For Girls set to appear.
Scouting For Girls said: "We always look forward to Foodies and it just wouldn’t be summer without it! The festivals have a great vibe and we often bring our family and friends along to enjoy the fun.”
Showcasing the best of Hertfordshire and beyond, many of the region's highly acclaimed Michelin and multi-award-winning chefs will also appear, including Kieren Steinborn-Busse from Michelin recommended The Falcon in Buntingford, and Brett Barnes, from Michelin recommended Fox and Hounds in Barley.
Kicking off each Foodies weekend on the Friday will be a fun-fuelled schedule of events featuring cocktail-making sessions with flamboyant mixologists and theatre shows.
Entertainment will include cabaret sessions, drag artists, competitions, comedy, top tribute acts and local performers, all headlined by a superb ABBA tribute band.
Throughout the three-day weekend, visitors can enjoy a jam-packed schedule of TV cooking show champions and award-winning chefs in the interactive live theatres.
In the Chefs Theatre, celebrities will create their signature dishes and share new tips and tricks, while star bakers will whip up showstoppers and offer tempting sweet treats in the Cake & Bake Theatre.
In The Kids Cookery School, Foodies' superchefs will be making cooking fun for younger guests.
There will be masterclasses in the Drinks Theatre include tutored Champagne, beer, cider, cocktail and wine-tasting, with presenters including BBC drinks expert Joe Wadsack, and local breweries and producers.
Visitors can also browse the latest food trends in the Shopping Village, meet local producers in the Artisan Market and taste exotic and unusual new dishes in the Feasting Tent – which features a mouth-watering range of street food and delicacies from all four corners of the globe.
Other attractions include a fairground, children’s activities, and family-friendly areas.
Day tickets cost from £3 (child) and £18 (adult), while weekend tickets are from £38. Tickets are on sale now at www.foodiesfestival.com
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