34 festivals in 5 cities, soonest first.
34 food festivals with a guide across 5 cities in United Kingdom, in date order from today. Each opens the festival page with dates, what to eat and what to book around it. How these cities compare with the rest: the city food festival index.
London Restaurant Festival has run city-wide festival menus, restaurant-hopping tours and chef masterclasses across London every October for 17 years.
TipFestival menus are booked through OpenTable and go live before the ticketed events. The restaurant-hopping tours sell out first.
Tours, tastings and classes from the cities on this page, bookable on GetYourGuide.
The Southbank Centre Winter Market, a Christmas market on Queen's Walk by the Thames, fills alpine-style chalets with street food stalls and pop-up bars from early November to early January.
TipVisit London's editors suggest weekday evenings after 7pm for the best atmosphere; Waterloo is the nearest Tube.
Manchester spreads 210 stalls across ten city-centre sites from Albert Square to the Corn Exchange, with mulled wine and hot food from early November to just before Christmas.
TipAlbert Square and Cathedral Gardens stay open to 3 January when the other sites have closed; craft stalls open at 10:00 and food at 11:00.
Bristol's Christmas Market runs from the start of November through the season in Broadmead, chalets of festive food around the Jager barn bar.
TipThe ski-gondola booths hire out for private groups; weekday evenings dodge the Saturday crowds.
Edinburgh's Christmas Market fills East Princes Street Gardens with around 70 stalls, local and international food and drink among them; free to enter.
TipFree to enter; the LNER Big Wheel stands in East Princes Street Gardens and the 80m Starflyer rises over the market, both ticketed. Hours vary on 17 November, 24, 26 and 31 December and 1 and 3 January.
Hyde Park Winter Wonderland mixes rides with a Bavarian Village of chalets and restaurants, a Street Food Village of global traders and a Christmas market, daily from 19 November to 3 January.
TipEntry is by timed ticket; the organiser waives the entry fee when you add £25 of rides, attractions or food to an advance online booking.
Eat & Drink Festival Christmas fills Olympia London on 26 to 29 November 2026 with artisan producers, festive street food, drinks tastings and chef demonstrations in the Christmas Kitchen.
TipAdvance adult tickets start at £16 on weekdays and £18 at weekends, and Kensington (Olympia) station is beside the venue. Entry also covers the Ideal Home Show Christmas.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Burns Night on 25 January marks the birthday of Robert Burns; Edinburgh restaurants, pubs and hotels hold suppers of haggis, neeps, tatties and whisky.
TipRestaurants set their own Burns Night menus and book through their own pages; the 2026 listings included dinners at Lyla, Ardfern and Montrose.
London's Lunar New Year festival fills Chinatown and Trafalgar Square with lion dances, food stalls and hot food, and is free to attend.
TipThe Trafalgar Square stalls are the easiest food; Chinatown restaurants take walk-ins only very early or very late on parade day.
During Ramadan, Manchester's Curry Mile on Wilmslow Road in Rusholme fills at sundown, with iftar buffets such as Sanam's and dessert lounges serving falooda and knafeh on the pavement.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
London Cocktail Week, the city-wide festival running since 2010, skips 2026 and returns in the week of 15 March 2027 for its 17th edition, with wristbands for offers in bars.
TipThere is no October edition in 2026: the new owners moved the festival to a spring slot because October is crowded with trade shows such as Bar Convent Berlin.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
The Glasgow Coffee Festival fills the Briggait for an April weekend of roasters, cuppings and competitions; the 2026 edition ran 18 and 19 April, and 2027 dates are not yet announced.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
London Coffee Festival at the Old Truman Brewery on Brick Lane in east London, trading since 2011, runs four days of specialty coffee tasting.
TipThe first two days (Thursday and Friday) are Industry Days and the public celebration is on Saturday and Sunday; tickets for the 2027 edition are not yet on sale.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
South Manchester's biggest food festival, held at Wythenshawe Park each May. International cuisines, chef demos, live entertainment over a long weekend.
Bristol Craft Beer Festival takes over the Harbourside on 11 and 12 June 2027 with craft breweries pouring across the two days; pre-sale tickets open on 1 October.
TipSessions sell out ahead; the We Are Beer team has already opened a 2027 mailing list, so book the June weekend early.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Sausage & Cider Fest tours the UK pairing bangers with cider and live music, and its calendar currently lists Bristol for a 2027 edition of the party.
TipThe organiser's site lists Bristol 2027; wait for dates rather than trusting resold tickets.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Taste of London has run five days of tasting plates from the city's best restaurants in Regent's Park each June since 2004, alongside 150 artisan producers.
TipWeekend tickets sell out a fortnight ahead; weekday lunch slots are easier. The chef demonstration arena is the marquee programming.
GRUB's summer market in the Mayfield Depot, Manchester. Twenty street-food traders, craft beer, weekend live music every Friday through Sunday, July-August.
The Glasgow Vegan Festival is a one-day indoor event at Easterhouse Sports Centre with more than 70 stalls; the organiser lists the next edition for Saturday 10 July 2027, standard entry £5.50.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Bristol Harbour Festival takes over the docks each July with tall ships, stages and street food traders stretched from Thekla to Underfall Yard.
TipSkip the busiest amphitheatre food lines and eat at the Wapping Wharf containers mid-festival instead.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Free-to-enter food festival at Assembly George Square Gardens with Scottish street food vendors and folk music, held just before the Fringe.
TipEntry is free; some programmed events in the Piccolo and Palais du Variete are ticketed. The festival is cashless, and dogs on a lead are welcome until 8pm.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
The Merchant City Festival fills central Glasgow for ten days each summer, with craft and street-food markets over two weekends and a Briggait hub of talks, workshops, DJ sessions and food.
Love Eccles is Salford City Council's free family day at Eccles Recreation Ground on Saturday 25 July 2026, with live music, workshops, funfair rides and community stalls.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
The Manchester Craft Brew Festival at Manchester Academy pours 50-plus craft beers, ciders and wines from 15-plus breweries with street food and live music.
Pop-up food vendors at Fringe venues each August, including Assembly George Square Gardens, Pleasance Courtyard and, new in 2026, Assembly's St Andrew Square.
TipVendor line-ups change every year, so check each venue's food page before you go. The free Edinburgh Folk & Food Festival runs at Assembly George Square Gardens just before the Fringe.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Foodies Festival's Edinburgh edition at Inverleith Park: a three-day weekend of chef demos, bake theatre, street food, drinks tastings and live music.
TipThe 2026 edition ran on Friday 7 to Sunday 9 August, opening at 2pm on the Friday and 11am on the Saturday and Sunday. Check the festival's site for the next edition's dates.
Valley Fest is a music, food and family festival on an organic farm by Chew Valley Lake near Bristol, with camping, held 29 July to 1 August 2027.
TipBook the long-table feasts separately from entry tickets; under sixes go free, which families should exploit.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Edinburgh International Festival is the city's August arts festival of music, opera, theatre and dance; the Edinburgh Festivals guide lists independent restaurants, bars and cafes by area.
TipThe festival has no food programme of its own; the Edinburgh Festivals food and drink guide suggests a restaurant, bar and cafe in each of 12 areas.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Heaton Park Food & Drink Festival, in its fifth edition on 1 and 2 August 2026, brings food stalls, live music and free live chef demonstrations to Heaton Park in Manchester.
TipBook tickets through heatonparkfoodfestival.com; the 2026 listing gave 10am to 8pm and a Cookery Theatre with 12 demonstrations. Metrolink runs to Heaton Park station.
Notting Hill Carnival in west London, trading since 1966 over the August bank holiday weekend, fills 50 blocks with Caribbean street food, sound systems.
TipSunday is family day, Monday is the main parade. Jerk chicken counters line every block; expect £10-15 per plate.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Meatopia London is a live-fire festival at Tobacco Dock, 3 to 6 September, where chefs from the UK, Europe and beyond each cook one dish over wood or charcoal.
TipThree sessions per day (lunch, afternoon, evening). Friday evening session is the built chef session; Sunday lunch is family-friendly.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
eat:Bedminster brings the South West's eat:Festivals circuit to East Street, filling Bedminster with producer stalls and street food in May and September.
TipIt is free entry and family-focused; combine with North Street's bakeries for a full BS3 food day.
Expected dates, not yet confirmed by the organiser
Glasgow Cocktail Week runs eleven days across the city's bars, with a wristband for cocktail discounts, masterclasses, trails and pop-ups; 2026 ran 24 September to 4 October and 2027 is not announced.
The Mayor of London's free Diwali festival in Trafalgar Square, with a main stage, 200 dancers and vegan and vegetarian food stalls, Sunday 25 Oct 2026.
TipArrive at 13:00 for the opening dance and to eat before the stalls get busy; no ticket or booking needed.
Calendar, month by month · Festivals by city · United Kingdom food guide
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