This year’s
Cardiff International Food Festival (6-8 July) was one of the best yet. Around
100 exhibitors attended, with stalls in Roald
Dahl Plaza ,
in front of the Pierhead Building , and along toward the Norwegian
Church in Cardiff Bay
There was a
strong programme of events in the John Lewis Food Theatre. Highlights included Chef
Anand George, owner of Purple Poppadom, cooking up some nouvelle Indian dishes
from the celebrated restaurant’s new menu; Norman Musa demonstrating Malaysian
dishes; and Angela Gray showcasing the afternoon tea menu at Llanerch Vineyard.
Chef
Richard Yearnshire demonstrated some items from the Tempus at Tides menu (St
David’s Hotel): Baked cod fillet and sweet chilli crust, pea and mint risotto,
followed by Tiramisu. Samples were snapped up smartly by the audience.
Three
dishes from the Laguna Kitchen in Park Plaza Cardiff were demonstrated by Chef
Justin Llewellyn. His Bruschetta included heritage tomatoes, chorizo sausage,
mozzarella balls and sourdough bread. Justin extolled the virtues of Welsh
rapeseed oil, which was used liberally instead of olive oil (it has half the
saturated fat of olive oil and is rich in 3-omega). Tuna Niçoise was made with
seared but practically raw sushi-grade tuna, Jersey Royal potatoes, quail eggs
in breadcrumbs, anchovies, black olives, green beans, samphire and rocket
cress. At Lugana, this dish is served on a slate with a wedge of lime.
There
seemed to be a lack of coordination between the different chefs. On Saturday,
for instance, three different versions of Eton Mess were made. My favourite was
by Jane, the John Lewis chef, whose version was made using rhubarb.
Apart from
Eton Mess, what’s in this year? Well, anything that’s gluten-free it seems. I
have never before seen such a concentration of food businesses promoting
gluten-free ranges.
I liked the
central positioning of the music bandstand this year. Pick of the cats for me
were Zervas and Pepper, excellent as always, and Funhouse, who had their
audience dancing in the rain with their infectious ska music.
The Cardiff
International Food & Drink Festival is part of the wider Cardiff Festival.
Still to come is The Harbour Festival (31 Aug – 2 Sept) on the same site, which
features The British Fishcraft Championships (which may partly explain the very
few fish and seafood exhibitors at the Food Festival).
Considered
on its own, The Cardiff International Food & Drink Festival is not a
Premier League event, such as Abergavenny or Cowbridge, but it has firmly established
itself as an essential date in the calendar and it gets a little bit better
each year.
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