Food and drink producers from across the region gathered in Burnham-On-Sea on Monday night (September 10th) for a launch party to begin the countdown to the town’s first ever food festival.
More than 40 exhibitors will take part in the Burnham-On-Sea Food & Drink Festival on Saturday 29th September – and Monday’s event provided a taste of what will be happening.
Dozens of food and drink producers from across the region will converge on the town for the free festival, to be held at Burnham’s Baptist Hall and The Princess Theatre, with fringe events across the town.
The organisers, Bev and Sarah Milner Simonds, welcomed some of the local exhibitors to Monday’s preview, including Brent Knoll cake maker Alison Barnes, above, and West Huntspill’s Michael Mohan, below, who makes the UK’s hottest chilli sauce.
The exhibitors also include a student-run business called ‘Cafe Paramo’ from Taunton’s Heathfield Community School, selling fairtrade coffee from Ecuador.
And other recent additions to the line-up include Clavelshay Barn Restaurant, RCH Brewery, Rich’s Cider, Mister Fudge, Razzle Dazzle Ice Cream, the Shotgun & Chelsea Bun Club, Coco Bella and Oatley Vineyard.
Meanwhile, Radio presenter Emma Britton from BBC Somerset has been named as one of the judges of The Great Burnham Bake Off, a cake making contest which will place at the event, as recently featured here.
“Momentum is certainly building for the cake contest – the festival inbox is filling up with interested bakers queries such as ‘Is a macaroon a cake’ and ‘are there extra points for decoration?’,” said Bev Milner Simonds, who added that entering is simple. Bake a cake, fill in an entry form and bring them to the Baptist Hall by 2pm on the day for a chance to win the trophy, which is sponsored by Burnham’s Positive Wealth Creation.
“There’s lots of interest and excitement growing around the festival – it promises to be a fantastic day,” added Bev. The full list of events is available here.
Students from Taunton’s Heathfield Community School’s ‘Cafe Paramo’ at Monday night’s Food Festival launch
