A festival for the taste buds in Leamington

This summer sees the return of the highly successful and popular ‘Royal Leamington Spa Food & Drink Festival’ organised by BID Leamington. The festival, which is free to attend, will take place on Saturday 29 & Sunday 30 August from 10am – 6pm at the Royal Pump Room Gardens.

With an even bigger and more exciting programme of culinary events, the 2009 festival is set to be an even bigger success than last year, which attracted over 10,000 people.

The festival aims to celebrate and showcase the very best in food and drink that Royal Leamington Spa has to offer. As part of the programme of events, visitors can take part in the extremely popular ‘Taste Trail’. Featuring a host of different restaurants, the 'Taste Trail' will encourage people to visit and sample their specialty dishes for free. Last year, thousands of people took part with all participating restaurants reporting record visitor numbers.

In addition visitors can enjoy an International Food Market, Warwickshire Farmers Market, live cookery demonstrations by local Chefs including Laura Hamilton from Queans Restaurant, cake baking, whisky tasting, competitions, live music, entertainment and the chance to experience a wide selection of delicious world-wide dishes.

Live music will be provided in the Pump Room Gardens by the extremely popular band ‘Lament’. Fronted by Kath Kimber, the five piece band brings together a fusion of Latin, jazz and flamenco. Having spent the last year touring to promote their album, the band is currently embarking on a tour of Art Centres and festivals. A funfair will also be provided for children’s entertainment.

Helen Smith, Executive Director of BID Leamington, stated “With so many exciting events and activities happening over the two days, our 2009 festival is expected to surpass last year’s visitor numbers. Not only does the festival present a fantastic opportunity for local businesses to showcase their culinary skills, but they also benefit from promoting their products to a much wider audience”.

Anyone interested in showcasing their products at the festival should contact Helen Smith at BID Leamington by e-mail to helensmith@bidleamington.com.

Further information about the festival can be found by visiting leamingtonfoodfestival.co.uk.