Free Cheese! Summer 2018 Food Festival Guide

Everybody loves free cheese and little bits of chopped-up sausage. And gin shots, of course. Christmas markets season is still a good few months away, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy some free cheese chunks.

via GIPHY

Summer food festival season has officially arrived, and it’s perfect for eating cheeky samples, trying new flavours, spotting celebrity chefs and supporting independent business.

Wherever you live in the UK, there’ll be a food festival nearby where you can do all of these things, so keep an eye out in your local area! We don’t have space to list every single one here, so here’s our pick of a few of the best to look out for this summer:

First up on our list is one of the many vegan food festivals that are increasingly popping up across Britain. Vegan food is big news right now, and you’ll be able to try everything from vegan pizza to vegan burgers and vegan sushi at the We Love Vegan Food Festival.

You’ll need to book your ticket in advance via the event’s website, then get yourself down to London’s Old Spitalfields Market on the evening of Friday 20 July or Saturday 21 July to sample all this vegan-licious grub for yourself.

And remember, there are currently more vegan cheese options than ever, so cheese samples can still be a thing.

Next up is an event celebrating the total opposite end of the spectrum to vegan food: pork pies. Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, official home of the pork pie, will be hosting its annual PieFest on Saturday 28 July and Sunday 29 July.

There’ll be all kinds of pork pies to try and buy, special events in the Pie Theatre (yep, that’s a thing) and a chance to learn how these classic picnic snacks are made from the experts too. Porky heaven.

Back to the capital now, with Carnaby Street Eat, which, as you’ve no doubt worked out, takes place on Carnaby Street, on Saturday 11 August from 12-7pm.

There’ll be street food galore from over 30 stalls showcasing cuisine from across the globe, live music, and live cooking demos, including an appearance from meat-free recipe advocates The Happy Pear, also known as twins David and Stephen Flynn.

You’ll be able to try out some cooking for yourself in the Carnaby MasterChef competition, and learn all about the latest food trends from chefs from six of the famous street’s eateries. It really does sound like a great event and, best of all, it’s free!

This one’s a big’un, featuring the likes of Raymond Blanc, Marco Pierre White and Jasmine Hemsley, who’ll all be doing demos, as well as live music from acts including Craig David, Paloma Faith and an actual Spice Girl in the form of Mel C.

The Big Feastival takes place every summer on a farm owned by Alex James of Blur fame, where camping tickets are available, and there’s even a Cheese Hub hosted by the man himself, complete with cocktails and artisan cheeses.

Don’t miss The Food Village where you’ll be able to sample pretty much every type of food you can think of, buy treats to take home at the Food & Drink Market, and see if you can get your hands on a ticket to the exclusive Friday Night Supper Club event hosted by Matthew and Iain Pennington of award-winning Bristol eatery The Ethicurean.

It’s over to Wales for the next foodie festival on our list: the Abergavenny Food Festival, which takes place from Saturday 15 to Sunday 16 September.

This year marks the festival’s 20th anniversary, and visitors will have the chance to learn about cooking over fire, forage for gin ingredients (seriously), see top cooks like Anna Jones, author of A Modern Way to Eat cook up a storm, and attend talks and debates, including ‘Grace Dent: Secrets of a Restaurant Critic’ and ‘100 Years of Women in Food’.

Last but not least is an event up north: the Great British Food Festival, which will be setting up at Cheshire’s Arley Hall from Saturday 22 September to Sunday 23 September. Before that though, it’ll be touring the country, pitching up at Knebworth (21 and 22 July), Chiswick House and Gardens (10, 11 and 12 August), Bowood House (25, 26 and 27 August), Stonyhurst College (also 25, 26 and 27 August), and Floors Castle (8 and 9 September).

At the Arley Hall event, you’ll be able to buy artisan brownies, bread and pastries at the artisan market, take part in a Cake Off challenge and enjoy talks from famous chefs, including past GBBO stars – and sample free cheese, of course.

Food festivals may seem like lovely civilised places, but when there’s only one artisan sausage roll left and no spots left to see Howard Middleton from GBBO Series 4 cooking up a gluten-free delight, things can get competitive. So, here’s our top food festival survival tips:

• Get in cookbook signing queues as early as possible. You might even need to buy the book from a specific seller on the day, and places could be limited, so avoid disappointment at not getting to meet your idol by getting there early.
• Don’t be afraid to ask to try. If a mouth-watering-looking fudge or cheese stall has no samples out, ask if you can take a nibble before you buy. Most stallholders will be happy to oblige – usually, they’re just trying to keep their stock as fresh as possible by not putting it out.

• Never double dip. Always use the cocktail sticks or plastic cutlery provided to take samples, and never go back for seconds with the same one. No one wants your germs.
• Don’t just buy your lunch, buy stuff to take home too. Goodies such as pies, bread rolls and brownies are all great to buy and take away with you to eat later. Just avoid anything like iced cupcakes or chocolates that could melt so you don’t arrive home with nothing but a sticky mess.