(Cheeses from Rostock Dairy, J.J Sandham Lmt)
Friday 26th August marked the start of the eleventh annual Bolton Food and Drink Festival. Spanning the four days of the bank holiday, Bolton town centre was to be crammed with food and drink vendors flogging their wares and competing for the attention of the masses.
I was asked by work to pop down to the festival for the weekend to take pictures and attend a few of the ever popular events hosted in the marquee. I agreed and so Saturday morning found me stood open mouthed at the sight of the biggest food festival I had seen in a long time. The nucleus of the festival was in Victoria Square alongside the events marquee and live music with markets spreading out down Oxford Street, Deansgate, Corporation Street, Market Street and Newport Street. We spent the entire day walking around on Saturday and I am certain there were still stalls we didn't get to see. Within an hour I was starting to worry about my camera's battery life I was taking so many pictures. Everything I passed seemed to be a colourful hub of photogenic food so it took me close to half an hour to get to the centre.
(Very fun marshmallows)
The event marquee was the destination of dreams for many visitors, for behind those guarded doors Celebrity Chefs such as John Torode, Nadiya Hussain and Michael Caines would perform demonstrations to those lucky enough to have bagged tickets. Thankfully I had already arranged my entry to the weekend events or I would have been disappointed; no on the door tickets available here.
(Pain au Chocolate)
The variety in stalls was stupendous; I saw at least twenty that I planned on returning to come lunch time. There was everything from cakes to paella to mead to vats of steaming noodles. It was a true foodie heaven and packed to the rafters with visitors of all ages and nationalities. Naturally the stalls featuring piles of colourful sweets and cakes were mobbed but so were the stalls churning out the more exotic cuisines. Stalls were decked out in bright colours or with huge signs declaring their wares to the passers-by. Everyone was smiling or laughing and greeted potential customers with open arms and free samples. This truly was the very epitome of a bustling market. I almost expected to hear cries of "Get your fish here!" as is so often portrayed in films.
(Something tells me this Paella might be authentic)
The authenticity of a lot of the cuisines available was amazing. Gigantic bubbling woks were overflowing with curries and noodles, colossal hanging grills held sizzling sausages over fires. It was like walking through the world via food stalls. You could jump from China to Germany to Spain and back again.
The people manning the stalls clearly loved their food and truly believed in what they cooked and as a result the people flocked to them relentlessly all day long. Someone at the council must have had a good ounce of logic when planning the layout of the plethora of stalls. Each section of the festival had a family of stalls with related produce but not identical, neatly avoiding dense pockets of curry or burgers. I think this helped to give the festival a connected feel where one street flowed into another seamlessly.
(Very pretty tarts)
Not only did the festival host food, it had lots to do with the kiddies too! The Central Library and street outside was taken over by Mad Science, providing a live science show and endless stalls filled to bursting with interactive science experiments to entertain and awe the young and old alike. Every time I passed, the area was crammed with a sea of children and parents enjoying the marvels of science. One youth decked out in a lab-coat offered a group of us a plate of dried insects with a smirked "do you dare eat one?" I plucked up a cricket, turned it this way and that before looking at a little lad watching and popped it into my mouth. "Not bad" I said, "could do with a bit more seasoning though." I like to think that little open mouthed boy was suitably impressed.
("Do you Dare?")
(Mad Science show)
However the one thing that stood out to me the most was the utter dedication of the volunteer army, who worked tirelessly all Bank Holiday. Each event ran on time, be it a demonstration, a tasting or the Afternoon Tea all thanks to the staff who prepared them. Their support to the festival was astounding, with every man and woman involved mucking in with every job, be it event organising to litter picking.
As the ever cheerful Michelle Tiffin, informed me "It doesn't matter which job you get given, everyone gets on with it and gets it done to the best of their ability. We just want to make Bolton proud." She then promptly hoovered the marquee with 2 minutes before the public came to take their seats. I've never seen anyone look so happy to be hoovering...
I feel that I need to do a shout out here to Margaret Asquith and Michelle Tiffin and the women working with them, because not only were they working to the best of their abilities but were amazingly helpful, friendly and pleasant to talk to, with a real passion for the festival shining through.
So thank you. You made my first experience of the festival wonderful and no doubt infected everyone else with your enthusiasm and smiles. The staff were a real credit to the Council.
(The amazing staff *)
I will certainly return to Bolton Food Festival next year and encourage everyone who reads this to try and make it too. Never have I ever had so much fun at a food market so I take my hat off and tip my camera to Bolton Council and say "well done!"
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*permission gained from Press Office for top and bottom left images of staff members