Jenna Stacey, Glanmire; Emma Nott, Flower of Macroom, & Eva Morris, Midleton,
Exciting new programme for Macroom’s 7th annual Food Festival!
When: Thursday 20th, Friday 21st, Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd September 2018
Where: Food, drink and entertainment events will take place at a number of indoor and outdoor venues across the town centre, including the Main Square, the Castle Hotel, various pubs, cafés and restaurants and Riverside Park Hotel.
What: Lots of food, music and fun for all the family: a vintage tea dance, an elegant Masquerade evening, a kids’ zone, the Macroom Taste Trail, a Multicultural food flavours event, a monster outdoor food market, a schools cook-off competition, interactive children’s entertainment, live music, & more.
Excitement is building with preparations in full swing for the 7th annual Macroom Food Festival. This year’s festivities are sure to please young & old, with events spanning over four days in a jam-packed programme. The much-loved Vintage Tea Dance will kick-start the weekend in style while Kids zone, a favourite with the kiddies, will return on Saturday morning. Crystal Swing will be performing live on the Main Square on Saturday night along with support bands & they are sure to get the crowds going. Sunday will feature the Monster Outdoor Food Market. This year will also bring the introduction of an elegant Masquerade evening while much loved events such as the Taste Trail and the International Food Flavours return. With live music throughout the weekend, this year’s festival will be one to remember!
The event is due to take place over four days from Thursday 20th to Sunday 23rd September 2018. The weekend will kick off with the Vintage Tea Dance on Thursday evening at The Castle Hotel – a delightful waltz back in time, with prizes for best dressed lady and gentleman so be sure to put on your best vintage outfit! Friday will feature the Festival’s first ever Masquerade evening at The Riverside Park Hotel, a glamorous evening of masks, music and of course delicious food put together by local chefs.
Saturday morning, the kids will have fun at the Kids Zone Marquee on the Main Square. A host of entertaining activities is lined up: catch a story at our new Story Time corner, have your face painted, get a balloon shape made or get crafty with Aaron the Balloon Man.
On Saturday afternoon, visitors will be able to take part in the ever-popular taste trail. Take a leisurely stroll around Macroom’s pubs, shops and restaurants and sample freshly prepared local produce while enjoying live music along the way. Tickets are €3 per tasting and are available from all participating venues and the festival HQ. From 5pm, come and celebrate multiculturalism through food with the International Food Flavours Marquee on the Main Square – you can discover a fantastic array of food from around the world: tickets are €1 per country or, exchange one taste trail ticket for three countries.
The festivities continue on Saturday evening where we will dance the night away on the Main Square with famous band Crystal Swing, performing all their hits at 9pm with support bands starting from 7.30pm. There will be food stalls too, providing plenty of sustenance for all!
The massive outdoor food market will return on Sunday and there will be tons of entertainment for all the family with face painting, balloon magic, live music from the Army Band of the Southern Command and lots more. Students will get competitive at the Schools Cook-Off and as always, there will be lots to eat and drink all round.
The festival will close with a massive festival finale party at the Castle Hotel.
Now in its 7th year, the festival has become a firm favourite and in the past number of years has drawn crowds of over 10, 000. The organising committee are hard at work putting together a programme which they hope will please food connoisseurs, families and music lovers alike, all the while showcasing the wonderful produces Macroom, Cork, Kerry & Munster can offer.
Please contact the organising team on 026-20544 or info@macroomfoodfestival.com for more information.
See www.macroomfoodfestival.com for more details.
Photography By: Michael O’Sullivan/OSM PHOTO
