Chester Racecourse is the setting this Easter for what is now the biggest event of its type anywhere in the UK - the Chester Food, Drink and Lifestyle Festival.
North West legal firm Allington Hughes Law have been working with organisers to continually build the event as managing director Alison Brebner explained: “It is hard to believe that this event has come around so quickly.
“The 2015 festival was the best yet with the Chester Food Drink and Lifestyle Festival getting bigger and better every year. As sponsors of the festival, everyone at Allington Hughes cannot wait for the Easter weekend in 2016 and we are looking forward to welcoming friends, clients, Chester residents and visitors back to Chester Racecourse for another year of fantastic food and entertainment.”
The event features an incredible line-up of chefs and food celebrities, headlined on each day by Simon Rimmer, Gregg Wallace and Andrew Nutter and backed up by the region’s finest with Dave Mooney, Luke Thomas, Sean Wilson, Brian Mellor and a host of local chefs all cooking up fabulous local dishes.
The chefs are complimented by more than 150 food and drink producers who occupy the centre of the racecourse with huge inside and outside areas and lots of seating.
This year organisers expect in the region of 30,000 people, according to principal organiser Stephen Wundke who said: “Our event has just grown and grown over the years and it is wonderful to see so many families out having a brilliant day enjoying food and drink together.”
This year also sees the return of Artfest with more than 40 artists and galleries showing a huge array of visual art and free daily seminars from artists.
The festival reaches out beyond just the three days of Easter as well, with the CH1 Chester BID Sous Chef Challenge. This is a chance for chefs from Chester, below the level of head chef, to compete and be judged on the stage at the festival by Masterchef supremo Gregg Wallace.
There is also the annual sausage competition where butchers from across the region compete to be crowned the Taste Cheshire Sausage of the Festival with the winner going on to compete for the UK Champion of Champions title in October.
Attached to the festival are the Taste Cheshire Food and Drink Awards, also in their 15th year. These awards are the definitive hospitality awards voted for by the public and then judged by industry experts.
Here they find the best restaurants, pubs, cafes, sandwich bars, those who excel at customer service and child friendly venues. Last year a record 20,000 votes were cast and you can enter your favourite Cheshire venue for free by going to the festival website and voting.
