A BBC Saturday Kitchen presenter, an award-winning chef, and a food content creator with millions of TikTok views will headline the Sunday cookery demonstrations at this year’s Bishop Auckland Food Festival.
The festival, organised by Durham County Council, welcomed an estimated 28,000 visitors last year and returns to the town on Saturday April 20 and Sunday April 21.
The Saturday chefs – BOSH! duo Henry Firth and Ian Theasby, Marcus Bean, and Dan Hunter – were confirmed earlier this month.
The Sunday line-up will begin with TV presenter, author, food writer and award-winning restaurateur Matt Tebbutt.
Matt is the presenter of BBC shows Saturday Kitchen and Best Bites, and his Food Unwrapped show is now in its eighth series. He has written three cookery books featuring his favourite recipes, and is a regular contributor to food and travel magazines.
“I know this is a big date in the town’s calendar and I’m really looking forward to meeting everyone in Bishop,” he said. “I love being close enough to interact with people and see their faces and how they respond to what we’re up to on stage. It’s a little more relaxed than Saturday Kitchen, that’s for sure! I’m on stage with some amazing chefs so get yourself there – you’ll get plenty of cooking inspiration.”
Matt will share Sunday’s stage with chef, author and entrepreneur Cyrus Todiwala – a regular guest on BBC Saturday Kitchen and James Martin’s Saturday Morning.
Cyrus founded his restaurant, Café Spice Namaste, in London in the 1990s, helping reshape Britain’s then-limited expectations of Indian cuisine and inspiring generations of Indian chefs. Today, Café Spice Namaste remains the longest-running Michelin BIB restaurant in the world. He has written six cookbooks and is a staunch advocate of education and training, social responsibility, sustainability, buying British, the environment and healthy eating.
Completing Sunday’s line-up is food content creator, bestselling author, and presenter Meliz Berg.
Her first book, Meliz’s Kitchen, became a Sunday Times number one bestseller when it was released in June 2022. Her easy-to-follow recipes are full of addictive combinations of flavours and spices, highlighting a melting-pot of cuisines from across the Mediterranean, Balkans and Middle East. Meliz, who has appeared on ITV This Morning and Channel 4’s Steph’s Packed Lunch, shares her unique and wholesome recipes on her ever-growing social media channels, Meliz Cooks.
All three celebrity chefs will be wowing visitors with their food demonstrations on Sunday April 21.
They’ll be joined by crowd favourite and TV presenter Chris Bavin, who returns as host across both days.
Also returning is Bishop Auckland’s MasterChef contender Mike Bartley, who will be offering a fine dining experience at Bishop Auckland Town Hall at 7pm on Saturday April 20. Tickets for the event, which will feature a four-course menu, are priced at £42 per person. To book, click here.
Details of the food traders, family entertainment, and cookery workshops over the weekend are set to be announced very soon.
To keep updated on all the latest Bishop Auckland Food Festival news, visit the event’s website www.bishopaucklandfoodfestival.co.uk and follow its social media channels.
