Sunderland Food and Drink Festival returning this summer
The Sunderland Food and Drink Festival, which attracted around 30,000 visitors last year, will take place from June 6 to June 8 at Keel Square, High Street West, and Market Square.
The festival will feature a wide range of global cuisines, family activities, and live music from local performers.
The entertainment line-up, curated by Sunderland Music City and Sunderland BID Affiliate Member ISG, includes Lottie Willis, Ruby Kelly, Voulez 2, and a Robbie Williams tribute act.
There is a full entertainment line-up (Image: Supplied)
There will also be creative workshops for children, covering topics such as eco-friendly gardening, arts and crafts, and interactive performances.
Children will have the opportunity to paint and decorate a picture frame with Art Cafe, decorate a plant pot, cork coaster, or wooden kitchen utensils, and even plant some seeds.
A Green Living Zone will highlight the value of creativity and sustainability, and visitors can have photographs taken with Flower Fiesta costumed characters.There will be a wide range of family activities (Image: Supplied)
Fresh produce from the University of Sunderland’s A Space to Grow community garden will be on sale, and on Friday, visitors can learn about the benefits of home hot composting.
On Saturday, there will be information about Big Bear Clean Up litter-picks and how to raise funds and awareness for Animals Asia.
There will also be sensory play, arts, crafts, and seed planting with Together for Children, and on Sunday, the Preloved Bear Co will be selling an assortment of pre-loved soft toys.
Throughout the weekend, visitors can take part in other activities, from workshops and nature-inspired arts and crafts to recycled material sculpture sessions led by local artists.
Pride Radio will be playing popular hits on Saturday in Market Square, and the launch of Pride in Sunderland is taking place at the Bridges with special drag queen appearances.
Afrobeats will pop up on Sunday with traditional African drumming, masks, fashion, music, food, and more.
The food offerings will be truly international, with everything from German sausages and American steak burgers to Greek souvlaki and spanakopita.
Traders taking part include Sumo Bento, Twisted Chick, and Musafari Grills.
Turkish favourites will also be available, as will Indian dishes, along with a taste of the Caribbean, Mexico, Korea, and Japan, while dessert stands and stalls will cater to those with a sweet tooth.
Roberta Redecke, marketing and events manager at Sunderland BID, said: “Not only do we have some of the best, most innovative, and tastiest street food, but we’ve also lined up three days of fun activities and entertainment for the whole family.
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“This is shaping up to be our best Food and Drink Festival yet and we hope as many people as possible will come along and enjoy everything on offer.”
The event will take place at Keel Square and High Street West from 10am to 7pm on Friday and Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sunday, and at Market Square from 10am to 6pm on Friday and Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sunday.
Additional elements will continue to be added to the programme and any traders who would like to take part but have not yet signed up should contact info@sunderlandbid.co.uk.
For more information and to keep up to date, visit www.sunderlandfooddrinkfest.co.uk.