Valentine Warner to launch Falmouth Oyster Festival
From 14 to 17 October, the picturesque seaside town of Falmouth will welcome visitors from far and wide to celebrate the annual Falmouth Oyster Festival, showcasing the diversity and quality of Cornish seafood and produce.
The festival is sponsored by St Michael’s Hotel & Spa and marks the start of the traditional oyster dredging season in Falmouth, home to the third deepest natural port in the world. The festival will be opened this year by special guest Valentine Warner, food writer and star of BBC Two’s ‘What To Eat Now’.
The festival takes place in the Events Square in the heart of Falmouth and celebrates the start of the oyster season, which runs from October to March with a host of cookery demonstrations by local chefs and stalls brimming with oysters, seafood, wine and local ales. The programme also includes, children’s activities, sea shanties, a town parade, oyster shucking competitions, live music, and a race of the Falmouth Working Boats.
Valentine Warner will open the festival at 11.00 on the morning of 14 October with a cookery demonstration, followed by signing of his current book ‘What To Eat Now: Spring and Summer’. At St Michael’s Hotel & Spa, Cornwall’s Hotel of the Year 2009/2010 and main sponsor for the festival, Valentine will also host a gourmet evening to mark the launch of the festival.
For full details of the festival programme visit: falmouthoysterfestival.co.uk
Valentine Warner is a food writer and cook with a passion for nature, the seasons and mainly being outdoors. He trained under chefs such as Alastair Little and Rose Carrarini before setting up a private catering company.
In September 2008 Valentine burst on to our TV screens with his first hit series ‘What to Eat Now’, which saw him seeking out the best food and dishes that autumn has to offer. A second series of What to Eat Now was another hit for the BBC and saw Valentine concentrating on summer’s seasonal bounty. Oysters remain a firm favourite and during his stay in Falmouth this autumn, Valentine will be visiting the oyster fishery and preparing his own oyster recipes for visitors and the local oystermen.
Located close to the beautiful Gyllyngvase beach in Falmouth, St Michael’s Hotel & Spa has a long association with the Falmouth Oyster Festival. The gourmet night hosted by Valentine Warner will take place at the hotel’s award-winning Flying Fish restaurant on 14 October, offering a unique opportunity to meet and talk food with one of the country’s up and coming food enthusiasts.
St Michael’s Hotel & Spa offers exclusive packages for visitors during the Oyster Festival weekend, including the gourmet night with Valentine Warner. Prices start from £625 per couple for a four night stay from 13 October, based on two sharing on a bed and breakfast basis. For more information and to book visit: stmichaelshotel.co.uk/oyster
