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food festivals, lost their way?

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food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Gillthepainter » Wed Aug 02, 2017 9:44 am

Used to love these places.
Nice to pick up decent spanish olive oils. Whole Scottish salmon you could prep at home and pop in the freezer.
Gadgets, knives that were too expensive.

Interesting demos.

Went to the Gloucester one at the weekend that just had meagre cheese stalls. Expensive scotch eggs (£4 for an average size one). Burger stalls that were smoking out the environment so no-one walked down that particular aisle.
Nothing interesting.

Fudge! Who's bothered by oversweet fudge.

Big bags of both salty and sweet popcorn, on the same corn.
Honestly - they're better as a separate pic n mix, anyone who goes to the cinema knows that, so it's a surprise which one you get in the dark. Not great together on the same popcorn.

Cheltenham food fayre is just a booze cruise on land. Wines, champagne, beer tents.
Nasty tasting bottle dips with crushed crackers.
It used to be excellent.

Farmers' markets are better.

Didn't they used to be fantastic 5 or so years ago?

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Renée » Wed Aug 02, 2017 2:24 pm

They were probably a bit of a novelty 10 years ago, or more, as were farmers' markets, which I've also stopped going to. There is a good one at Hoghton Tower, which is about eight miles away.

I used to enjoy the Christmas European market in Albert Square, Manchester, but they have the same old things such as German spice biscuits and many of them, Belgian waffles, German and Dutch cheeses, the German wooden Christmas decorations, clothing, Dutch pottery, Dutch bulbs and plants. I really miss the German knife stall, which is no longer there, sadly and I'm not surprised at that. The hot Gluhwein was nice with a German sausage in a bun, although we usually went for a meal instead.

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Lusciouslush » Wed Aug 02, 2017 2:28 pm

I don't go to them anymore Gilly - every one of them seems to be full of nasty people just going to stuff their faces as much as they can, plus the screaming kids.
Such a shame, as I used to enjoy them, a nice way to spend a summers day & find producers unknown before.

The Chilli Festival over at Chichester used to be a fav of ours - lots to see & buy, & a great atmosphere. We haven't bothered going for a few years now - it's packed with nasty, 'orrible people double-dipping everywhere - so even if something interests us we don't go near the stalls unless a fresh supply is opened in front of us - some stallholders are happy to do this, but it's a pita to keep asking like we're germ freaks ( which I am!).
It's also become expensive to get in - I think it was something like 14quid a head - so I suppose the great unwashed think by stuffing everything they can into their gobs they're getting value for money! ugh!

In the opposite direction, there's a 'Foodie Festival' held on Hove Lawns with massive marques, demos with celeb chefs & champers tent - & a LOT of very pretentious people talking absolute cr%p - that one will set you back around 25quid each, more if you visit the champers tent......!

The farmers markets around here really take the pi*s - charging silly money for grotty produce - I really don't know when it all changed!

Yours.........

Grumpy of Hove.

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Joanbunting » Wed Aug 02, 2017 3:25 pm

Haven't been to one in the UK for ages. There used to be fabulous ones round here but they are more and more touristy. The ones around Christmas are much better, usually combining local food and wine.

By the way Gill the veggie haggis was to make Scotch eggs for veggie D-I-L !!!!

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby WhitefieldFoodie » Wed Aug 02, 2017 4:08 pm

I went to "The Big Grill UK" in Burrs Country Park a few weeks back as its was only a 10 minute walk from our house.

What a rip off. There was 1 real BBQ/Smokehut, and it had sold out. So I ended up paying £31.5 for a grilled cheese sandwich and an icecream taking into consideration the £12.5 ticket price. I complained via email, but received no reply.

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Renée » Wed Aug 02, 2017 7:37 pm

That's shocking and a complete waste of money. Just realised that it's near to Brandleshome where my eldest lives.

The advertising makes it sound really good.

http://thebiggrilluk.com

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Pampy » Wed Aug 02, 2017 11:54 pm

WhitefieldFoodie wrote:I went to "The Big Grill UK" in Burrs Country Park a few weeks back as its was only a 10 minute walk from our house.

What a rip off. There was 1 real BBQ/Smokehut, and it had sold out. So I ended up paying £31.5 for a grilled cheese sandwich and an icecream taking into consideration the £12.5 ticket price. I complained via email, but received no reply.

If you can be bothered, try posting something on their Facebook page - I find it works wonders in getting a response when complaints are made public!

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Renée » Thu Aug 03, 2017 12:07 am

I've just been having a look on their Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/thebiggrilluk/

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby karadekoolaid » Thu Aug 03, 2017 1:45 am

I actively participated in Foodie Festivals from 2008 through 2012. I took my chutneys, pickles, jams, jellies, marmalades and hot sauces to see how the public reacted to them. Fortunately, they were well-accepted, and this produced some important commercial alliances - 1 tonne of guava jam a year to a goat-cheese purveyor, for example!
In the beginning, the events were selective. I had to go through a vetting process to get into the first events. However, there came a time ( around 2010) when it seemed the commercial aspect took over; and THAT is when the quality of the products at the event began to fall.
If I were to organise a Foodie Festival, I would seriously avoid giving space to:
Dips
Anything with "Nacho" in it
Sodding cup cakes
Anything too esoteric (ie. Shetland Isle deep-fried, tomato-infused samphire) :crying1
Pizzas, onion bhajis or sushi

The first event was huge, although the number of tipsy young ladies was also huge, thanks to the multiple Chilean wine bars. the Chef demonstrations were great, as were the invited guests. ( We had Massimo Bottura, Heston Blumenthal.. :clap :clap and yours truly talking about hot chile peppers :lol: :lol: :lol: )
I picked up some wonderful wine tips from genuine experts on which wines to serve with my spicy Indian food.

The last event I attended, however, was sort of, well - decadent. Lots of seedy , predatory journalists looking for freebies or I`ll give you a bad write up, industrial products that belonged on the shelves of cheap supermarkets, rather than gourmet stores, and the typical "I`ve-come-here-to-eat-anything-for-lunch" visitors. Sorted the latter out, though - I added habanero sauce to my artichoke dip :twisted: :twisted: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Gillthepainter » Thu Aug 03, 2017 8:17 am

Thanks for the otherside view, KK.
I know what it's like to be on the selling side of stalls, and deal with some ghastly people.

When people expect freebies, they don't value them anyway. Have some class and actually buy something.
(I was at a Christian event, and a fellow exhibitor wanted one of my paintings for free. She said she did charity work for free all year and didn't see why she should pay for one of my pictures.
Nice try sunshine, but I explained the error in her thinking).

We aren't tasters, unless for a product I'm seriously thinking of taking home.
So it's frustrating to have a wall of greedies barricading access - so I just move along.

Cheese is usually rubbish, as it's got that "been frozen" graininess to it.

Lush
That double dipping is horrid. People putting their used picks back in with the clean. Hurl !

Joan, one of the best I've been to was in France.
Twas an olive oil festival solely - and brilliant it was too. Actually it was in Corsica.

Forgot about those entrance fleece fees.
I don't mind a fiver. We've not been to the NEC for some years. Bet that's a price now.

Now I'm simply getting wound up ................ especially as we have a literary festival coming up, where books are more expensive than Waterstones down the road.

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby WhitefieldFoodie » Thu Aug 03, 2017 2:42 pm

Pampy wrote:
WhitefieldFoodie wrote:I went to "The Big Grill UK" in Burrs Country Park a few weeks back as its was only a 10 minute walk from our house.

What a rip off. There was 1 real BBQ/Smokehut, and it had sold out. So I ended up paying £31.5 for a grilled cheese sandwich and an icecream taking into consideration the £12.5 ticket price. I complained via email, but received no reply.

If you can be bothered, try posting something on their Facebook page - I find it works wonders in getting a response when complaints are made public!


Good Idea, Pampy!

Will do so now. :lol:

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Badger's Mate » Thu Aug 03, 2017 2:58 pm

We don't go to many food festivals. One in Thame a few years ago was fun, with Raymond Blanc, Tom Kerridge and Lotte Duncan amongst others. I remember talking to a chap demonstrating game cookery including sous vide pheasant legs. He'd seasoned them in some Dutch pepper mixture.

The festival has got a lot bigger now, I wonder if it would be as enjoyable.

We support the Benington Lordship Chilli festival, which has also grown somewhat but still has a nice feel. We prefer to visit at opening time on the first day; less busy than later, affording a chance to chat to stallholders and try stuff. Mrs B is on immunosuppressants and is loath to try anything unless she's confident we're the first. There are bound to be double-dippers in any crowd I guess, same as there are a proportion who don't wash their hands after visiting the toilet. :thumbsdown

Farmers' markets hereabouts are the usual mixture of good and less so. We've got some nice local farms, one of which is nearer to our house than the farmers markets I buy their stuff from. Their bullocks are kept on the Meads between here and Hertford and have on one occasion visited the allotments. I always feel I'm getting my own back when I buy their beef or veal :D

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Gillthepainter » Fri Aug 04, 2017 8:27 am

ha ha ha.
Revenge is a dish best served with gravy.

Interesting you find first days better.
I was saying to Tony to go on the last day (cycling event at the NEC in September), as it's less crowded? Most people have been already?

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Stokey Sue » Fri Aug 04, 2017 10:55 am

The advantage of going to festivals on the last day is usually that they sell things off cheap (famously plants and flowers at Chelsea) and at Food Festivals they may be more generous with samples as they'll give you whatever is left of the amount put aside (equally they may have run out)

I've enjoyed going to some Food Festivals, but unless you can get into some good demos, it is really just an expensive market with a nice atmosphere. I quite like the ones where they give you vouchers for something bigger than a taste, so you know you are getting something for your ticket price.

Our farmer market is 100% organic and food has to come from within a defined region. I used to buy a lot of my meat there but I don't much like the current butcher (the previous one went bust). Some of the food is lovely, Martin who grows the basic veg was pleased because my dad said his caulis were the best he'd had since my grandpa stopped growing them. I may go tomorrow to see if there are plums around

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Badger's Mate » Fri Aug 04, 2017 5:06 pm

Yes, a good festival; food, music or gardens in our case, is a nice day out. Sometimes there are (genuinely) special festival prices, but another point is that you can buy stuff from producers around the country without P&P, so the entrance fee is offset a bit in that instance. I'm very fond of Mr Vikki's products but we rarely go anywhere near Cumbria. Their annual appearance in Herts is a once-a-year opportunity to stock up. Similarly it's my best chance to buy Terra Rossa goodies.

On the subject of plums, we were at Gt Amwell FM yesterday, Craner Produce from Nazeing were there, and had plums and greengages for sale, so hopefully they'll be available in London tomorrow.

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Stokey Sue » Fri Aug 04, 2017 5:22 pm

Postage is a good point
Having gorged mysel on bullaces the last weekend I feel that domestic plums should be around, good to know it's true

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Badger's Mate » Fri Aug 04, 2017 7:35 pm

Postage is a good point


Except I chose the worst possible example - Mr Vikki's don't add postage. There ought to be a 'doh!' smiley...

However, they do have reasonable offers on the day of the festival.

The point is generally valid of course. :D

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Gillthepainter » Sat Aug 05, 2017 8:26 am

That's a point, plums.
Local here, in the Evesham valley. And the festival is due in a couple of weeks.


Postage kills me. Actually 2 things bug me.
Mobile phone charges, and unreasonable postage charges.


What do you do with the plums you acquire?

(I have an old recipe for baked with plums, chinese-esque).

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Petronius » Sat Aug 05, 2017 10:14 am

Our Farmers' Market (twice a month) in the centre of town is now a shadow of its former shadow – never really took off. Improved when a fish van came along, but then a fish shop opened and he stopped. Shame, as his fish was fresher and cheaper than the shop and Waitrose.

We buy from pie/pasty the lady and that's about it. Eggs, cheese, meat, chutneys, jams etc., we can buy from the delicatessens in town – three close by – or make our own.

Each year the town has a High Street food fair, no entrance fee except for the demonstration – good in parts I think is a fair comment, some stands are there for publicity for their business, the lady who makes gluten free cakes for example, nothing wrong with that by the way.

Anything decent can be had in the town's small shops so we buy very little. Last time I bought anything was 2kg of damsons for a quid. I lurve damson jam.

Plenty of stands cooking bog standard fast food stuff, as well as a hog roast. The worst thing about all food stands is the meat being put in a white 'bap', that really should only be used to wipe off plates before putting going in the dishwasher. Just a more expensive version of a paper towel, or a cheaper version of cotton wool - take your pick. :D

Thame's Food Fair was very good when it was in the High Street, though very busy, but we noticed a number of stands cooking paella, sausages etc., were the same as at the Bristol Balloon Fair. The Greek stand's address was a big warehouse in London - they travelled the country.

Thame's is now on the edge of town at the Show Ground, tickets are reasonable, £5 a day and parking is free. We won't be going.

Like Farm Shops – original concept of Food Fairs was good, but prices are higher than elsewhere and not always of the best quality.

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Re: food festivals, lost their way?

Postby Gillthepainter » Sat Aug 05, 2017 10:46 am

Yep, that sums them up really, Dennis.

We have a fantastic local road for shopping anyway. The Bath Rd.
Japanese and organic/ veggie vegan shop.
2 butchers (I favour one, and don't go in the other).
Coop & Sainsbury
Fruit n veg market shop etc.

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