Gloucester Quays Food & Drink Festival 2015

Having moved down from the cold climates of Leeds in West Yorkshire to the sweltering heat of the South, I wanted to try as many things as possible in my first few weeks living in a county that seemed to have completely different mannerisms and characteristics that the one I had just moved from - and what better was to see what fantastic local produce and vibe Gloucestershire has then to attend the annual Food & Drink Festival at Gloucester Quays, which took place this year on the 17th - 19th July.

As well as beautiful weather in the Summer, Gloucestershire is filled with amazing local produce and events, such as the Gloucester Quays Food & Drink Festival, which I spend an incredible afternoon at last week. As well as interesting fusion food along side locally grown, fresh produce, there was an array of events and shops selling all means of trinkets. Although, the highlight for me was definitely the attendance of one of my baking idols, Paul Hollywood from The Great British Bake Off who gave demonstrations in bakery perfection as well as some useful tips I have locked away for a rainy day.

One of the things I found amazing was the number of stall selling home grown or fashioned products, especially one stall selling stunningly finished wooden figurines of all sizes, some as small as the palm of your hand, and some six feet tall, imported from Indonesia by Direct Teak. My favourites, of course were the owl figurines which ranged from incredibly detailed dark wooden pieces to more adorable pieces made from a birch wood - and very reasonably priced considering the craftsmanship. 

I also came across a number of stalls selling home made cakes, which I was instantly drawn to, with strawberries bigger than I had ever seen and flavour combinations I have never even considered like lemon and cinnamon cupcakes along side dark chocolate and key lime pie ganache - something which I will definitely be attempting to make at home in the near future! There was also an adorable tea shop set up with vintage chairs and tables and hay bails surrounded with bunting and 1950's style cups and saucers and all the servers dressed in the same style with polka dot head scarves and puffed out skirts - a fashion trend I really wish I could pull of.

Wandering around, I came across many wonderful food and drink offerings, but there were two which caught my eye instantly and I couldn't resist trying - Venison Burgers from locally sourced less than 30 miles away, Stanton Park Game, which I had with stilton cheese and crispy bacon. I was so impressed with how juicy the venison burgers were, as the only time I have had venison before this I found it quite chewy, and much tougher than the beef you usually get in a burger such as this. While venison isn't my favourite meat in the world it was such good quality and you could taste the freshness in the meat - and any burger offering blue cheese as a topping has won me over before I've even tasted it! 

Another food stall I was drawn to was The Mighty Soft Shell Crab Company stall, offering fresh crab tempura with a homemade chilli dip. I only got to try a little bit of the crab as Pete tried to wolf the whole thing down to himself, and I can understand why. The crab went really well with the light batter and sharp chilli dip, all served in a flour tortilla wrap with salad and together it was all so delicious, if not a little over priced. 

There was so much stuff at the Gloucester Quays Food and Drink Festival and I can't wait for next year to come around! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that if they had attendance by Paul Hollywood with year that Mary Berry may be next years guest. I'm pretty overwhelmed by everything that's been happening in the last six weeks, and can't quite believe that I have graduated university, got a job and been fortunate enough to move to a place down South that not only had such incredible weather but has so much to offer and do - I used to think I was a city girl, but now I'm unbelievably happy getting back to my semi-country-side routes that I grew up with. Let me know in the comments below if you have been to a food festival recently and what your favourite part about such events are...