A very Sloe Walk…..just add Gin.

Sloe Gin

A very Sloe Walk…..just add Gin..

With the Wales Alternative Food Festival kicking off for two days on Friday 30th September and the Bridgend Love2Walk Festival starting on Saturday 1st October, we thought we’d do something in the lead up to combine the two themes. So here’s a food related walk that you may be interested in later this week.

This Thursday (22nd September 2011), from Bedford Park near Bridgend at 6pm, one of our colleagues Robert Jones (not the former Wales and British Lion scrum half!) will be leading a stroll through the park showing us some of the food on offer in our own natural environment. We’ll be looking for sloes in particular and at the end of the walk about 7.30pm, Rob will be showing us how to make sloe gin, all in good time for Christmas.

We will be meeting at the Bedford Park car park and mainly walking on surfaced paths, but please wear stout footwear and bring a waterproof, just in case!

Any queries at all, please ring Rob on 01656 643160 or email him at robert.jones@bridgend.gov.uk. See you there.

Feastival returns for 2011

Following the success of our first ever Feastival in October, we’ve been inundated with loads of people and businesses asking if we’re doing another one.  Well, it was never in doubt of course, but we’re happy to confirm as expected that Feastival (Wales’ Alternative Food Festival) 2011 will return to Bridgend Town centre on Friday 30th September and Saturday 1st October 2011 and will probably be even more ’alternative’ than before.  In 2010 Feastival entertained no fewer than 35,000 people over the two days and that was despite the appalling weather on the Friday – ‘we had never seen rain like it in Wales before’  - even the Ryder Cup was rained off.  Like Feastival, the weather is always unpredictable in the UK and the Saturday was like a Summer’s day!

David Loh, Magic Melon Man, Food Feastival, Bridgend

David Loh, Magic Melon Man, Food Feastival, Bridgend, originally uploaded by Tourism Bridgend.

David Loh, Magic Melon Man with a licence to thrill!, Bridgend Food Feastival 1 & 2 October, 2010

David Loh, Melon Man, Food Feastival, Bridgend

David Loh, Melon Man, Food Feastival, Bridgend, originally uploaded by Tourism Bridgend.

A great two day food festival in Bridgend Town Centre. The new ‘Feastival’ attracted thousands of people and the two highlights for me have to be the Melon Man and the 10ft cauliflower sheep.

Bridgend Feastival

Bridgend Feastival, originally uploaded by Tourism Bridgend.

Not your usual food festival, FEASTIVAL is a new food festival with a difference. Alternative and quite unique. Expect the unexpected. Has all the usual trimmings, but there’ll be some odd surprises.

Taking place in Bridgend town centre, FEASTIVAL, Wales’ alternative food festival will open on the 1st October with the arrival of the Olympic leek. This will mark the start of the two day event that is set to amaze, excite and tingle tastebuds.

Food lovers will relish an assortment of finest welsh produce, whilst egg dropping, leek lobbing, pimp my snack and melon sculpting will keep visitors smiling.

As well as the traditional food hall and market stalls, there will be ‘cook-offs’ with special guests, cookery demos, an urban allotment, food cinema and the grub-hub tent designed just for little foodies.

Make sure you get your 5 a day and a little bit more at Wales’ first alternative food festival. Bridgend town centre, 1st & 2nd October 2010. For more information visit www.walesalternativefoodfestival.com or call Bridgend TIC 01656 654906.