Thousands of visitors attend 16th annual Leamington Food and Drink Festival

Thousands of food lovers descended on the Pump Rooms Gardens to enjoy some of the region’s very best food and drink at Leamington Food and Drink Festival.

Around 115 exhibitors were in attendance, dishing up a variety of street food including everything from burgers, jerk chicken and pizza to gyros, burritos, loaded hotdogs and curries which could be washed down with tipples including local beers, spirits and wines as well as cocktails, coffees and soft drinks.

Those with a sweet tooth could also enjoy cakes, ice cream, brownies, doughnuts, cookies, churros, cannoli and pastries, while traders also offered local produce including jams, chutneys, cheeses, pies and bread.

There was something for everyone to enjoy at the family-friendly two-day event, organised by BID Leamington, which featured a host of entertainment.

The Live Cookery Theatre was once again a popular choice for foodies who were able to watch demonstrations from chefs including Russell Allen, of Aubrey Allen; Michael Price, of Prices Spices; Olena and Vyshnyk, from the Polich Centre; Sophie Hyam, of Culinary Bites; and Rosana Carlin, of R&G Spices.

Sunday saw the return of the popular Aubrey Allen Home Cook Competition and this year chefs battled it out in the ‘best homemade chilli cook off’.  The delectable dishes meant it was a close contest, but it was Raine Jackson, who hails from Birmingham and is currently living in Leamington, who triumphed after entering on a whim.

Younger visitors were able to get creative in the kitchen thanks to the return of The Kid’s Cookery School, hosted by Anne Marie Lambert of Get Cooking, and they could also enjoy making music as part of children’s activities hosted by Rachel Turner, of Rhythm Time.

A variety of acts also took to the stage across the weekend to provide the soundtrack to the event.

Sam Cornwall-Jones, owner of The Drawing Board and co-owner of The Magic Wingdom which were both in attendance, said: “The event is the best experience in Leamington from a foodie perspective which takes place on a yearly basis.

“This is our seventh year with The Drawing Board and second with Magic Wingdom, and rain or shine it's always well attended.

“What's special about the food and drink festival is that it's mainly independents. The hospitality industry is unfortunately still on its knees so businesses are having to work incredibly hard to be different, and the event shows that people are still excited by independents and what they have to offer.”

Ashley Baker, director at The Steamhouse, said: “The food festival was a fantastic event which saw us sell out on both days.

“This was our sixth year at the event and we're always really pleased to show our support. People come from far and wide which is amazing for brand awareness, and we received some excellent feedback from our customers.”

Matt Crowther, owner of Pug Pubs including Leamington's Royal Pug and Greek restaurant Taverna Meraki, said: “This year's food and drink festival has been another excellent event. It attracts people from all over the country and really puts Leamington on the map.

“We started attending in 2014 with just the bar and it was our first ever event. It was originally a way of marketing our fixed location, but having bought all the equipment we began attending other events off the back of this.

“Since then we've grown to launch a full-time events business and now attend festivals and events right across the UK.”

Nick Fayolle, events manager of the businesses, added: “The food and drink festival is an incredibly well-organised event. BID Leamington keep businesses up to date with all of the information they need throughout, and we're very pleased to attend and show our support each year.”

Alison Shaw, BID Leamington Project Manager and organiser of Leamington Food and Drink Festival, said the event was one of the most popular to date.

She said: “The Leamington Food and Drink Festival continues deliver a fabulous weekend of food, drink and entertainment for all the family to enjoy.

“Despite the Saturday being one of the hottest days of the year the whole community came together and the atmosphere was brilliant right across the weekend as people of all ages enjoyed everything the event had to offer.

“I would like to thank all of the businesses who consistently bring an array of high quality and interesting products - it was wonderful to welcome back some food festival favourites as well as some new businesses from the town and further afield.

“I would also like to thank our team of staff and volunteers who gave their support across the weekend and helped ensure our 16th annual event was such a success.”