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05 March 2024
Here’s why festivals & pop-ups’ might help… Standing out from the crowd might not be possible at some of the UK’s biggest and best festivals and events but step back from the mosh pit and you’ll find an abundance of food and drink from every culture, country and for every style and taste.
The options are limitless. From cult classics to Michelin Star supremo’s - and they are huge crowd pleasers. And we love them for it… Take, for example, the likes of music heavy-weight ‘Glastonbury’, offering up no less than 400 food outlets at last years’ event with the likes of Michelin star chef Paddy Kelly of famed ‘No Frickin Chicken’ leading the way…
We’re not just talking music festivals but food festivals too and now the UK is rocking its big annual events once again, post pandemic (Glastonbury 2023 hosted over 200k – think Wembley stadium and times by two). Festivals, like pop-ups, are an opportunity for both aspiring and accomplished chefs to showcase new dishes, new tastes and enjoy customer feedback instantly, putting to good use a demographic of diverse consumers – after all they have a sitting (or dancing) audience at their fingertips and eating and drinking is all a part of the festival fun, right!
On that note, welcome to the stage, Alex James, of Blur fame and his annual ‘Big Feastival’ in the Cotswolds. Where celebrity chefs rub their proverbial pastry brushes with the musical elite, cooking up a menu of treats. Last year included Asma Khan, Nathan Outlaw, Jack Stein and Anna Haugh no less with tunes from Sigrid, Tom Grennan and Mel C.
It doesn’t stop there – Paul Ainsworth in Cornwall brings London to the South-West, with demo’s from Angela Hartnett and dairy spectaculars from James Martins’ Ice cream truck, all washed down with the cool tonic that is The Kaiser Chiefs and The Sugarhill Gang, a genius combination.
(*See our list below for this years’ 2024 London events).
These sanctuary’s of Summer-time are not the only options either – the year is peppered with pop-ups of all shapes and sizes and these ‘One night only’ events (which can run for much longer) are a great temporary alternative. Why? Because what better way to experiment with new
menus and ideas, without the financial risk. Often, cool, sought after, intimate expose’s that chefs have total creative freedom in - can be used as a perfect sounding board for measuring the potential success of a new venture. The reverberating effects echo through to potential investors, big shout-out’s on social media and give great insights into what’s good and what’s not.
So, next time you’ve got both hands wrapped around the most delicious Filthy Bun (see Three Compasses Dalston Lane), unlike anything you’ve tasted before, whilst humming along to David Guetta and imagining it’s the noughties – look out for the re-release of that dish and it topping the food charts in the future because that’s often where it all starts.
Labour's Autumn budget has introduced a host of changes that will impact the UK hospitality industry, none more so than the changes to the business rates relief.
Catch up on all the months latest news and views from Restaurant Property
More bang for your buck or just looking for more taste than a Vogue stylist ? Then head over to the high-street because the flavour of the month could just be hiding in plain sight.
