As the summer harvests are collected, Britain starts to prepare for the winter ahead with a whole host of fabulous autumnal food festivals. In honour of British Food Fortnight, which runs from 16 September until 1 October, here’s our top 10
1. Royal Leamington Spa Food and Drink Festival
9 – 10 September
This free festival, regarded as one of the most exciting autumn food festivals in the country, attracted more than 25,000 visitors in 2018. This year, it will feature over 140 exhibitors and a great range of activities including a Live Cookery Theatre with demonstrations from local chefs, and a Kids Make & Bake Cookery School where budding young chefs can get down with the dough. Musical accompaniments will not be lacking either, with a bandstand marathon, sponsored by Free Radio, featuring talented, local musicians throughout the weekend.
2. London Restaurant Festival
7 September – end of Autumn
London is well-known for being a foodie hub and this autumn is celebrating its culinary heritage in the London Restaurant Festival. From restaurant-hopping tours, to street food stalls, from cosy Neighbourhood Nights, to drinks Masterclasses – there’s something for every palette to enjoy.
3. The York Food and Drink Festival, York
22 September – 1 October
This Autumn follow a taste trail offering samples from delis and restaurants around the historic city of York. The activity spills out through York beginning at the daily specialist market on St Sampson’s Square. Free cookery workshops are held across the city centre, teaching participants how to make bread and pasta from scratch, and even how to smoke their own food. In the evenings, join an intimate dinner offered by locals in their own homes or have supper in some of the city’s historic buildings such as the Guildhall, Treasurer’s House and Bar Convent. For a more relaxed evening atmosphere, find the music events located at gin and wine bars across the city.
4. Bournemouth Vegan Festival
30 September
Perfect for vegan foodies, this festival by Vegan Events UK features over sixty fantastic stalls serving world cuisines, engaging cookery demonstrations and workshops, and talks about the benefits of going green. If you can’t make it to Bournemouth, this festival travels around the UK, and you can find it at all major cities near you.
5. Thame Food Festival, Oxfordshire
30 September – 1 October
A pop-up pub, street food stalls, and pizza-making workshops for kids, as well as cooking demonstrations aplenty, are just some of the activities on offer at this established food festival.
6. The Great Wight Bite, Isle of Wight
9- 10 September
Street food traders from across the Isle of Wight and the South Coast of England will be flocking to the stunning Northwood House this Autumn for a weekend of delicious food and a celebration of the island’s farmers, fishermen, and chefs. There will be opportunities to buy from some of the best local artisan food and drink producers, as well as the chance to visit a unique pop up Smoking Lobster dining, lounge and oyster bar restaurant. Entertainment includes a Masterclass Kitchen and even a Queen tribute act on the Saturday evening.
7. Taste Cockermouth
23 – 24 September
One of Taste Cumbria’s four successful annual food events, the autumn edition is held in the Lake District town of Cockermouth. A firm favourite with foodies, attracting 40,000 visitors each year, celebrity guests have in the past included the Hairy Bikers, John Torode, James Martin, Jay Rayner and Simon Rimmer.
8. Aldeburgh Food Festival, Suffolk
23 – 24 September
What began as a humble food festival has quickly grown in popularity and has become one of the country’s best, packed with local producers and exhibitors. Look out for quirky offerings such as hedgerow-based cordials and artisan cheeses, and the kids-only zone for mini masterchefs in the making.
9. RHS Taste of Autumn
September – October
The Taste of Autumn Food Festival is not be missed for horticultural foodies. Taking place across two RHS gardens – RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Essex and RHS Garden Wisley in Surrey – it features an array of artisan produce and magnificent botany in delightful settings.
10. East Midlands Food Festival, Leicestershire
7 – 8 October
Granted a PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) for its famed delicacy, Leicestershire’s town of Melton Mowbray hails its eponymous pork pies in a Food and Drink Festival of its own. Held over the 4 and 5 October, the rural capital of food and drink has stalls in their hundreds to offer all things edible, drinkable and delectable. Not only can you grab a pork pie but tables are laden with exotic meats such as ostrich and zebra as well as Iranian culinary dishes – a nod to the area’s bustling multicultural community.
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