Cornwall Food & Drink Festival

Featuring a packed timetable of demonstrations from top chefs like Nathan Outlaw, fun for kids inthe Funky Food Zone and awash with the best local produce; there really is something for everyone over the three action-filled days.  This year Cornwall’s biggest food festival is augmented by a raft of new events, including a series of exclusive masterclasses, fringe events, and the introduction of a special fixed price Festival Menu which will run throughout Cornwall.

WHAT’S ON IN THE CHEFS’ THEATRE

Friday 28 September
10:00 am Opening Challenge - BBC Radio Cornwall presenters Daphne Skinnard and Debbie McCrory team up with Paul Ripley and Stephane Delourme,Rick Stein’s Head Chefs past and present
11:15 am John Vincent, The Fort & Laurie Foster, Great Western, Newquay
12:30 pm Olly Jackson, New Yard, Trelowarren
1:45 pm Joe Lado Devesa, Penventon Park Hotel, Redruth
3:00 pm Dale McIntosh, Norway Inn, Perranarworthal
4:15 pm Gavin Roberts, Kernow Sausage Co & Darren Millgate, Wild Café Bedruthan Steps Hotel

Saturday 29 September
10:00 am Tom Hunter, Scarlet, Mawgan Porth
11:15 am Fiona Were, Greenbank Hotel, Falmouth
12:30 pm Arthur Potts Dawson, Good Energy - Low Carbon Cooking
1:45 pm Mike Suggett & Paul Tregillis, First Great Western Pullman Dining
3:00 pm Tom Scade, Tides at the Mariner’s, Rock
4:15 pm Stewart Eddy, Victoria Inn, Perranuthnoe

Sunday 30 September
10:00 am RNLI Challenge - Neil Haydock, Watergate Bay Hotel and lifeguard Tim Fallowfield, go head-to-head with ChrisEden, Driftwood Hotel, Portscatho and Falmouth lifeboat coxswain Mark Pollard
11:15 am Nigel Tabb, Tabb’s Truro with Country Sports South West
12:15 pm Callestick Ice Cream Competition Final - Gareth Spencer of The Bakehouse, Penzance v Aaron Janes of Silks Bistro, Newquay
1:15 pm Tim Treseder, Heartlands, Pool
2:15 pm Nathan Outlaw, Seafood and Grill and Restaurant Nathan Outlaw, Rock
3:30 pm Harvest Auction, in aid of Truro Cathedral’s Inspire Appeal

WHAT’S ON IN THE CROUST BAR

Friday 28 September
10.00 am Getting to Grips with Game, Cornish Venison Co, Country Sports South West
11.15 am Fish Preparation Demystified, Annie Sibert, My Fish Kitchen
12.30 pm Fresh Ideas with Rodda’s, Steve Marsh
1.45 pm Cheese Tasting and Grading, Mark Pitts-Tucker, Davidstow Cheddar
3.00 pm Winning Festival Pasty Flavour Unveiled, Simply Cornish
4.00 pm Molecular Mixology, Matthew Bird, Cornwall College
4.45 pm Live Music

Saturday 29 September
10.00 am Butchery Masterclass, Frank Linn, Brian Etherington’s, with students from Fifteen Cornwall
11.15 am Delicious Dairy Dishes, Roy Heath and Trewithen Dairy
12.30 pm Cheese Tasting and Grading, Mark Pitts-Tucker,Davidstow Cheddar
1.45 pm New Ways with Traditional Saffron Cake, Mathew Rowe,Falmouth Packet Inn and Simply Cornish
3.00 pm Mastering Mussels, Tommy Atkins, Ohana, Newquay
4.00 pm Understanding Ale with St Austell Brewery
4.45 pm Live Music

Sunday 30 September
10.30 am Everything you Wanted to Know About Oysters, Ferryboat Inn, Helford
11.45 am 50 Mile Menu, Llawnroc Hotel and cornishfoodmarket.co.uk
1.00 pm Getting to Grips with Game, Ken Symons, Oliver’s Falmouth,and Country Sports South West
2.15 pm Proper Afternoon Tea, Dan Russell, Alverton Manor
3.00 pm Live Music

For food-lovers everywhere the festival promises a real taste of Cornwall: visitors will be able towatch their favourite chefs in the demonstration theatre, relax in the Croust Bar and taste, sampleand scoff their way around over 60 Cornish food and drink producers.  Over 40,000 people are expected to visit this years festival.

From Friday 21 September until October 7, the new Festival Menu will be running in restaurants, pubs and cafés across the county. Participating outlets will be serving up a special menu celebrating the best of Cornish produce, with two courses for £15 or three courses for £19.

Over 20 restaurants have already signed up; from The Beach Hut at Watergate Bay, Nathan Outlaw’s Seafood & Grill and Tides in Rock, to The Greenbank Hotel in Falmouth, The Llawnroc in Gorran Haven, Barclay House in Looe, down to The Queens Hotel in St Ives; all corners of Cornwall are covered. Visit www.cornwallfoodanddrink.co.uk for full details of participating restaurants.

Cornwall’s culinary superstar, Nathan Outlaw will be hosting a special masterclass on Monday 24 September at his Seafood and Grill, located within the St Enodoc Hotel in Rock. Nathan will be joined by his friend and fellow chef Paul Ripley. Both with Michelin stars under their belts, the evening includes canapés, a six course Cornish tasting menu and wine. Distinguished food critic and Great British Menu judge Matthew Fort will be leading the proceedings and putting the two chefs through their paces.

The Michelin theme continues as The Driftwood’s Chris Eden, the first Cornishman to gain a Michelin star within Cornwall, joins acclaimed chef Nigel Tabb for an exclusive evening at Tabb’s Restaurant in Truro on Wednesday 26 September. Together they promise to bring gastronomic flair to this unique evening, which includes a sumptuous six course tasting menu, wines specially selected by Old Chapel Cellars and conversation from BBC Radio Cornwall’s Daphne Skinnard.

The festival fringe events continue on Saturday 29 September with ‘Fresh off the Press’, jointly hosted by luxury eco hotel The Scarlet, at Mawgan Porth, and award-winning drinks producer Cornish Orchards. The experience begins with a guided tour of the stunning orchards, discovering how the apple juice and cider are made. Later, Andy Atkinson, expert cider-maker and MD of Cornish Orchards will join guests to enjoy an apple and cider-inspired four course meal and wine flight at The Scarlet. This event is also available as part of a luxurious two night stay.

Ruth said: “We want to encourage people to get involved with Cornwall’s food & drink - whether that’s by eating somewhere they haven’t been before, or trying something for the first time - it’s all about celebrating the amazing range and quality of food and drink we have here in Cornwall.”

At the main event in Truro there will of course be the now customary mix of Cornish classics such as hot pasties and clotted cream teas on sale along with contemporary favourites such as designer-inspired chocolates and tasty Cornish duck. Alongside over thirty demonstrations, challenges and masterclasses will take place on two stages over the three days in the most ambitious programme to date.

New for this year, on Sunday 30 September is a special RNLI Charity Challenge pairing two top Cornish chefs with RNLI lifeboat crew for a new cook-off.