STRATFORD Food Festival cooked up a storm at the weekend after nearly facing the chop earlier in the year.
The popular two day event took place on Saturday October 28 and Sunday October 29 and crowds descended to get their fill of artisan food, top chefs and entertainment.
Celebrity chefs, including Glynn Purnell and Tom Shepherd, showcased their culinary skills on the demo stage.
Other highlights included local businesses such as Shakespeare Distillery, who gave a cocktail making demonstration, and over 130 artisan stalls.
The stalls, all representing regional producers, included everything from cheeses, freshly baked goods and artisanal oils, to sweet treats, jams and preserves and gourmet beverages.
The festival’s street food traders also whet appetites with an array of global cuisine.
And there was a host of free entertainment available on both days including face painting, balloon modelling, musicians, stilt walker, and living statues and comedy waiters, who entertained shoppers with a combination of silent sketches, slapstick and dance.
The festival faced being cancelled last month due to event organisers Cocker Hoop Creative pulling out but Stratford BID managed to rally around and save the event at the final hour by appointing local company LSD Promotions to run it.
The festival had been previously scheduled to take place on September 16 and 17.
