Food festivals are among the best ways to spend a fantastic time with friends and family. You get to experience a diverse range of cuisines from different cultures and communities in one place. From casual street food to experimental cuisine, food festivals serve as a platform for all sorts of food enthusiasts to indulge and explore.
Whether you’re a fan of spicy, savory, sweet, or all of the above, these food festivals in London are bound to provide you with an unforgettable gastronomic experience!
Food Festivals in London
London food festivals are known for their tasty street food, craft beer, and live cooking demos. Celebrated at numerous locations across the city, these festivals can be a great opportunity for newcomers to gain business exposure while also providing culinary enthusiasts with the opportunity to explore different types of culinary experiences.
Here is a list of some of the most popular food festivals in London you need to visit for an unforgettable experience!
1. Estrella Galicia’s Gastronomy Month
This month-long Spanish cuisine festival is held annually across several cities in the UK, London being one of them. Throughout the selected Gastronomy Month, participating restaurants across the country offer delicious tapas pairing experiences with Estrella Galicia beers to showcase the versatility of the drinks. Estrella Galicia also hosts exclusive ticketed events consisting of guided beer-tasting masterclasses, chef-hosted tours, menu tastings, tapas tours, and Spanish fiestas. All these events are also incredibly affordable. So, if you’re interested in Spanish cuisine and have a fancy for beer, this festival is definitely for you!
Website: https://estrellagalicia.com/gb/gastronomymonth/
Venue: Various areas
2. World Halal Food Festival
Formerly known as London Halal Food Festival, this festival celebrates halal cuisine and welcomes foodies from all over the world. From a live cookery area, shopping counters, and stage acts to 100-plus food stalls with a variety of fast food, this place offers everything needed for a fun-filled day! Various intercontinental cuisine, sweet dish stalls, virgin cocktails, food rivalries, spice challenges and eating competitions await at this event, and guests can compete to win exciting prizes.
Website: https://worldhalalfoodfestival.com/
Venue: London Stadium, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park E20 2ST
3. Chinese Food Festival
If you are fond of Chinese cuisine, this is the place to be! Along with workshops, demos, and market booths, cookery from various regions of China, this festival is also a great opportunity to explore Chinese culture and values. You can try famous dishes from regions like Hubei, Hunan, Sichuan, and Shaanxi. Well-known Chinese restaurants like Master Wei Xi’An, Chilli Legend, and Rice Coming participate in this event.
Venue: Bedford Square Gardens, Bloomsbury WC1B 3ES
4. Meatopia
Hosted at London’s historic Tobacco Dock, this festival is a call for all meat lovers to unite! More than 70 of the world’s finest live-fire chefs come together to cook exquisite meat dishes from responsibly sourced ingredients over the course of three delightful, fun-filled days. Beverages come from craft brewers, craftsperson distillers, and mixologists across the city and can be combined with the dishes to make for an incredible gastronomic experience.
Website: https://www.meatopia.co.uk/
Venue: Tobacco Dock, Tobacco Quay, Wapping Lane, Wapping E1W 2SF
5. Pub In The Park
Founded by Tom Kerridge, Pub in the Park is a grand food and music festival tour that happens across several locations. From award-winning performers to chef stage demos, this festival promises an exhilarating experience for the visitors. for more information on schedules and tickets, you can check their website.
Website: https://www.pubintheparkuk.com/
Venue: Various areas
6. Yam Carnival
By the founders of Afro Nation, Yam Carnival is a celebration of generations of African heritage. With live music featuring African jazz, reggaeton, Rhythm & Blues, hip hop, African swing dance, and the popular music of Jamaica across three classes setting a unique ambiance, you can expect food trucks inspired by African food culture, Caribbean cooking, and Latin American palates. You can also find dishes inspired by the Creole and recipes cooked in Cajun-Acadians style. If you want a evening of grooving to jazz while you explore food rich in the southern spirit, this is the place be!
Website: https://yamcarnival.com/
Venue: Clapham Common, Windmill Drive, Clapham SW4 9DE
7. Rumfest
Rumfest is the world’s longest running rum festival that offers food tastings along with presentations from premium rum brands across the world. It provides an opportunity for traders to meet to discuss business leads and strategies while exposing their brands to potential customers. For the consumers, this festival offers food and alcohol pairing courses and a variety of snacks and banquets centered around rum and rum cocktails.
Website: https://rumfest.co.uk/
Venue: ILEC Conference Centre, 47 Lillie Road, Earl’s Court SW6 1UD
8. Rosé Garden Party
This festival is for all the lovers of rosé! It promises a three week long premium experience from rosé brands across the city, offering wine tastings, rosé pairings, mocktails and even pop up food and dessert stalls from restaurants and bakeries across the city. Some pop ups also offer limited edition items. You can enjoy rosé wine in all its frothy, forms, flat, blended into mixed drinks and cooled till it is frozen. For more information, you can visit the Covent Garden website and find the yearly festival press releases.
Website: https://www.coventgarden.london/
Venue: Covent Garden
9. All Points East
This is a food and music festival that happens annually at Victoria Park in east London. Over the festival weekend, you can enjoy food from pop up stalls from traders across the city, while watching artists perform on stage. You can also enjoy drinks from bars and pop ups in the festival.
Website: https://www.allpointseastfestival.com/
Venue: Victoria Park, Grove Road. Bow E3 5TB
10. La Piñata
Organized by Spirit Society, this weekend festival of Cinco de Mayo has everything Mexican, along with a side of a healthy amount of tequila and mezcal, to give you the authentic Mexican experience! You can learn about the drinks while you enjoy samples from the producers. The festival also offers a bar serving cocktails and masterclasses for those who are curious. And if you enjoy a particular sample too much you can also bring a bottle of it home with you!
Website: https://www.spiritssociety.com/la-pinata-london
Venue: Tobacco Dock, E1W
11. Junipalooza
Another gem from the Spirit Society, this festival is centered around gin and happens on a much bigger scale. From global gin brands to upcoming gin makers, you get to sample it all (complementary!) while enjoying a number of savoury sides offered by numerous food stalls. The festival also offers workshops, live music and a bar serving exclusive cocktails.
Website: https://www.spiritssociety.com/junipalooza-london
Venue: Tobacco Dock, E1W
12. Gin And Rum Festival
Being the largest touring gin and rum festival in the UK, it offers well over 120 gin and rum options from handpicked distillers. The festival often features exclusive spirits not easily accessible. You can also enjoy drinks from an exclusive cocktail bar while dancing to live music from award-winning DJs.
Website: https://ginandrumfestival.com/
Venue: St Mary’s Marylebone, W1
13. Urban Village Fête
This festival is a modern take on the traditional British summer fete. The Urban Village Fête is a celebration of art and music. From collage club, paper hat making to coaster marbling workshops, this fete has everything for a creative and enjoyment filled group or family outing. Don’t forget to check out the local freeway food vendors offering everything from sweet and savoury items to refreshing drinks. For more information, you can visit the Greenwich Peninsula website.
Website: https://www.greenwichpeninsula.co.uk/
Venue: Central Park, SE10
14. Wing Fest
Calling all chicken lovers! This festival happens across the country with the London variant being the biggest chicken wing fest in the world. This festival promises tremendous joy with live concerts and delicious chicken wing tournaments with people competing for the top title.
Website: https://www.wingfest.co.uk/
Venue: London Stadium, E20
Conclusion
These festivals across London celebrate food in unique ways, each promising a different take on the term ‘food festival’. All of these festivals go beyond just a culinary experience proving to be a sensory treat. If you’re looking explore the the unique experiences that London has to offer, these food festivals should rank pretty high up the list! So save the dates and head over to these festivals for a fun -filled time exploring diverse palates with your friends or family.
Also read: 5 Best Steakhouses in Cardiff
