The Comber Earlies Food Festival is taking place on Saturday 25 June and promises to be a great day out for food lovers and the whole family.
The one -day festival organised by Ards and North Down Borough Council in partnership with Food NI, Comber Earlies Growers, DAERA, Tourism NI and the Ulster Scots Agency, takes place in the town’s centre and will showcase the world famous Comber potato which achieved EU Protected Geographical Indication status in 2012.
The event which is part of The Council’s NI Year of Food and Drink programme will have lots of delicious food on offer. Come along and sample the world famous Comber Earlies or some delicious locally produced food from the artisan Food Fair. Celebrity chef Tom Hunt who worked with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall on the River Cottage TV series will be making a special appearance at the event. Presenter and author of The Natural Cook: Eating the Seasons from Root to Fruit and co-owner of the acclaimed Bristol based tapas restaurant Poco, Tom is known for creating simple, vibrant dishes made from ingredients chosen for their quality and ethics and will be demonstrating some delicious potato dishes at the festival.
Alongside Tom, local chefs Paula McIntyre, Kyle Greer and Carla Schofield will also be doing live cookery demonstrations at the festival kitchen throughout the day. For more information on a series of Year of Food and Drink events in Ards and North Down see www.visitardsandnorthdown.com/food.
This year’s programme is packed full of activities for all ages. Relax at the hay bale picnic, take part in some Ulster Scots Highland Games or enjoy the live music on offer. Kids can enjoy lots of country-inspired crafts in the Craft Big Top; make a flower, a colourful head-dress or your own scarecrow! In the food activity tent, festival-goers can take part in fun food activities; interactive potato sampling, a potato salad competition and a Man V Food competition. And look out for the tractor display and the street theatre programme which features some roller skating tomatoes!
The festival runs from 10am to 4pm and is a free event.
The Comber Earlies Fringe Festival will be running from 17 to 26 June. Delivered by Comber Regeneration Community Partnership, the Fringe Festival programme includes lots of activities like a supper dance, live music, a Spub Quiz, car boot sale and lots more.
This year’s festival is kindly being sponsored by the Department of Agriculture Environment & Rural Affairs, Tourism NI and The Ulster Scots Agency.
For further information check www.visitardsandnorthdown.com