Have you made plans for Easter weekend yet? #Blog
Stephen Wundke
2nd April 2019
This is the 19th year of the Taste Cheshire Food and Drink Festival and we cant wait?
Saturday’s VIP tickets have already sold out and Sundays are not far behind. Hardly surprising when you look at what you get. A free glass of champagne, a free glass of cider, a £6 meal voucher, a bottle of Nescafe Azera, a bottle of Volvic flavoured water, your own VIP Car Park and entrance and your own VIP bar with music and even better a £30 card that you can use in any Individual Restaurant Group venue – all that for just £20. Even general admittance tickets, which are just £8 on-line, get a £20 card. Its been an amazing lead up to this years event and if you havent bought your tickets yet, which saves up to 20% on-line then you should do. Here is what you can expect if you have never been before.
With 30,000 people expected on the Chester Racecourse, the Taste Cheshire Food and Drink Festival is the biggest event of its type to take place anywhere in the UK at Easter . Over 150 exhibitors highlight the best the county, region and country has to offer and means that for you, the visitor, it is simply a wonderful culinary experience.
Sunday Brunch on Saturday? – with Simon Rimmer
The Festival is proud to announce we have just confirmed our biggest and best line up of chefs – ever, thanks to Duchy Homes, who have sponsored our Demo Stage. Three days of top class cooking and its all free once you buy your ticket to the event.
Great British Menu judge Andi Oliver
The first is Simon Rimmer. Star of Channel 4’s, Sunday Brunch and of course Strictly Come Dancing last year, with mixed success – he’s a much better cook! Simon is a brilliant chef who cooks food that we all want to eat and can actually make, now there’s a change. He is live, twice on Saturday the 20th April.
On Sunday the 21st April we have major TV star, all round entertainer of stage and screen and judge of The Great British Menu, Andi Oliver cooking on our stage. We are really looking forward to getting to know her, hearing about her amazing life and just what goes on behind the scenes on Great British Menu.
Matt Tebbutt brings us, Saturday Kitchen on Monday?
Which brings us to Monday where some would argue we save the best till last and this is when Matt Tebbut of Saturday Kitchen will be on our stage. Matt hosts the top rated BBC programme as well as having starred in Channel 4’s Food Unwrapped and The Good Food shows, Market Kitchen.
This is a stellar line up of top line chefs who are also fabulous live entertainers. They are of course all free to see and included in your entry ticket.
This year there are so many things to see and do. Come and join us at the Adult Cooking Classes brought to you by Brian Mellor and the Harthill Cookery School. These sessions will be hands on, so you have the chance to get involved in cooking and to learn from the master. Each session gets you involved in the whole cooking process from start to finish – including the eating bit!!! But there is more!!
Broil King are giving you the chance to learn how to cook a “proper BBQ” This is one of our most popular attractions as we give you the opportunity to learn the special skills of the Broil King BBQ. Our expert chefs show you how to, not just cook the meat but prepare and finish the dish using the best possible BBQ techniques. No more cremated chops, flamed fillets or stone cold sausages. You will leave an expert and the family will love you. – What about the children – well of course………Kids also cook for free
For the last 8 years the Academy of Culinary Arts team have provided free cooking classes for the children who have come to the Chester Food Drink & Lifestyle Festival. James Holden, the Northern Director and his team of chefs taught over 900 children in three days in a series of sessions throughout the day. Each session lasts 40 minutes and during that time, children of all ages get a sensory guide to food with tastes, smells and colours. They then learn the various techniques for basic cooking and many help prepare a dish.
There is even a dog show on Sunday 21st where you can bring along your dog and find out who has the Waggiest tail – always hotly contested, Best Trick – can any dog pull a rabbit out of their hat – or indeed not chase one! Prettiest bitch – Can get particularly catty, to mix metaphors, Most Handsome boy – like any boy wouldn’t want to have this on his CV!, Best veteran (8+) – Loads of love to give here and Scruffiest mutt – no matter how we try they still get in to this state – you just know that’s your dog. Plus the Fun Agility, – lets see that special bond of respect and obedience between master and dog, or is it the other way around.
So much to see and do and thanks to an amazing deal with the Individual Restaurant Group every person who books a ticket will get a voucher for either £20 or £30 depending on the tickets you book which can be spent in their Restaurants. It is an amazing offer and with tickets from just £8 when bought on line it really is the best four hours of family fun for under £20. Book your ticket now .