Stowmarket Food and Drink Festival returns and attracts thousands of people
After a two year absence, a popular food and drink festival returned yesterday offering all types of cuisine - from juicy burgers to vegan doughnuts.
Stowmarket Food and Drink Festival attracted thousands of people who tried a range of locally-sourced food, pop up bars and sweet treats.
One stall that saw a lot of attention was Heart of Suffolk Distillery which is based at Finbows Yard in Bacton.
Ryan Luke, managing director of the family business, said: “It was fantastic - Stowmarket came out in droves.
“We saw lots of people who had previously tried our products, but also lots of people who hadn’t come across us before.
“It was a busy day and the atmosphere around the town was lovely. We must have served and spoken to over 200 people and we made more than 50 solid sales which is quite big numbers for a small gin business.
“Seeing the event draw people in from Ipswich and Bury is a real god-send for local businesses.”
The event also saw the addition of Bury St Edmunds-based bakery Gee Gee Bakes.
Georgia Crouchman, owner of Gee Gee Bakes, had a very busy day. The sweet treats proved so popular that she ended up completely selling out on all her brownies, cheesecakes and coffee.
Georgia said: “It was a really good event, very busy as I didn’t get to see much of it as I didn’t leave the stand all day - but it was a very positive atmosphere.
“We had a consistent queue throughout the day. Some wanted just one cake whilst others were ordering 20 at a time.”
After starting the business in 2018, Gee Gee Bakes has developed into a popular spot in Bury as the trailer usually sits outside Starbucks in the Buttermarket.
She said: “I think it’s a brilliant event for local businesses. It’s really good publicity for us and today I saw I’ve got a few more followers on Instagram which is great.”
Organised by Stowmarket Town Council, more than 55 stalls attended the event and there was also the Kitchen Theatre display which saw chef Sam Sturman delivered cooking tutorials at the John Peel Centre.
The JPC also hand picked artists to play live during the day in the Market Place.
Other venues offered activities for children to get involved in the festival fun.
The Regal cinema played food-themed family favourite movies, The Food Museum held children’s cooking sessions and Red Gables put on hula hooping workshops and clown performances.
Karl Daniels, Communities and Partnerships Manager for Stowmarket Town Council, said: "It was great to see the streets of Stowmarket totally full of happy visitors and residents making the most of the amazing sunshine.
“Many thousands visited the festival, which was brilliant.
“People seem really happy to be out, eating and drinking, listening to live music and taking part in the various family activities.”
