The country’s biggest Easter food festival will return to Chester Racecourse in 2018 with a star-studded line-up of chefs and a variety of things for foodies to eat, drink and do.

Chester Food, Drink and Lifestyle Festival organiser Stephen Wundke said he was excited about the planned events for 2018 as he explained: “Next year is the 18th year of this iconic event and every year it gets bigger and bigger. We have some outstanding chefs confirmed as you would expect, kids’ cooking returns, we have adult cooking classes and last year’s incredibly popular BBQ cooking classes return with local chef Brian Mellor at the helm again.

Celebrity chef Brian Mellor will return to the festival again in 2018

“Exhibitor bookings are at 75% with still four months to go and the range of food and drink on offer is as broad as ever.

“Our ever popular Camperfest that sees over 1,500 people camping on the racecourse, is open for bookings with 500 people having signed up to come again in the first week of tickets being released. It promises to be another bumper Chester event with the economic impact estimated by Manchester University being in excess of £2.4 million to the local economy.”

Running side by side with the event will be the Taste Cheshire Food and Drink Awards and voting for this will commence in January. Last year more than 44,000 votes were cast by Cheshire customers with this event now the biggest and longest running of its type in the UK with the first awards back in 1998.

Stephen added: “We can’t wait to celebrate our 20th anniversary, and the wonderful food and drink scene Cheshire has had to offer.”

Festival visitors looking at one of the food stalls

The heats for the search to find the Sausage of the Festival will commence on February 16 with the finals taking place on Sunday, April 1. This ever-popular event sees festival goers act as judges to choose the winners from the semi-finalists selected by a group of judges who make their decisions at the University of Chester NOW food centre.

The festival has something for everyone from children through to adults, and is still an event where a family can have four hours of fun for less than £20.

Tickets for the event go on sale on Monday (November 27) with online adult tickets discounted by 25% and costing just £6 and children under 12 go free.

For more information, visit www.chesterfoodanddrink.co.uk .