Ticket Giveaway! Christmas Foodies Festival 2016 at EICC

**We have FIVE pairs of tickets to give away for Christmas Foodies Festival**

Check twitter @cazmonkeysround to win!

Following up on last year’s success, Foodies Festival Christmas returns to Edinburgh’s EICC on the 25th, 26th and 27th of November.

This festive season the Chefs Theatre boasts a stellar line up, including Masterchef 2016 Winner Jane Devonshire, who’ll be cooking up her favourite family Christmas recipes for guests for the first time. Plus, Great British Menu star Michael Bremner will prepare his beautifully executed mackerel dish, ‘A Message to the Lode Star’, which earned him an unequivocal 10/10 on the show and left veteran judge and two Michelin-starred chef Daniel Clifford in tears.

Acclaimed chefs sharing their top tips for a tasty Christmas alongside Jane and Michael include:

Michael Bremner - Scottish Regional Champion Great British Menu 2016

Jane Devonshire - MasterChef Winner 2016

Marcello Tully – Michelin-starred Chef at Kinloch Lodge in Skye

Brian Grigor – Michelin-starred Chef at Number One at The Balmoral

Jamie Scott – MasterChef: The Professionals Winner & The Newport

Adam Newth - Scottish Young Chef of the Year Winner & The Tayberry

Scott Davies – The Three Chimneys

Mark Greenaway - Restaurant Mark Greenaway

Stuart Ralston - Aizle

Tony Rodd - MasterChef Finalist 2015

Neil Forbes - Cafe Marlayne

Three Sisters Bake - Authors, Bakers & Chefs

Paul Wedgwood - Wedgwood Restaurant

Fraser Allen – The Pompadour by Galvin

In the Cake & Bake Theatre, Burlesque Baker Charlotte White will create a modern showstopper of a Contemporary Christmas Cake in just 30 minutes (with not a plastic Santa in sight!), while master chocolatier Fiona Sciolti showcases a new selection of chocolate desserts and treats, as well as introducing her newest seasonal delights including Churros with delicious festive toppings.

In the Drinks Theatre, Champagne expert Neil Philips and wine experts Charles Metcalfe and Brian Elliot introduce their favourite tipples for Christmas, while Melissa Cole gives guided craft beer tastings. There’s also gin, whisky and Christmas Cocktail masterclasses on offer, so there’s a workshop to suit every taste!

To get in the festive spirit, visitors can also attend one of the brand new series of 12 Christmas Top Tip practical masterclasses which cover a range of activities, from learning the perfect way to curate a festive cheeseboard, to whipping up a Christmas spiced ice cream, and mastering the best techniques for curing salmon.

An Artisan Christmas Market introduces top producers selling a whole host of locally made delights, including cheeses, chutneys, oils, Christmas hampers and gifts, while the Pudding Hall offers up artisan macaroons, cupcakes and sweet seasonal treats.

To keep you satisfied while you explore, there will be range of international and award-winning Street Food stalls showcasing tasty snacks including calamari, steamed pork buns, macaroni cheese and Creole delights.

For younger foodies, the Elves Cookery School offers tutorials in Gingerbread man baking and Christmas Cookie decorating to keep everyone entertained.

The party spirit will be kept up all day long with vintage-style singers and Christmas Carollers providing entertainment on the Live Music Stage. Plus, to add to the fun, daring visitors can take part in daily events like the Chilli Eating Competition and test their sweet tooth with the Mince Pie Eating Contest, as well as team up to compete in the Christmas Quiz and Charades Relays.

Tickets: 

Tickets are on sale now at foodiesfestival.com or by calling 0844 995 1111

All children aged 12 and under go free to all Foodies Festivals when accompanied by an adult.

Date, Venue & Opening Times:

Edinburgh EICC, Friday Nov 25th, 5pm - 9pm

Edinburgh EICC, Saturday Nov 26th, 10am - 6pm

Edinburgh EICC, Sunday Nov 27th, 10am - 5pm

Review: Edinburgh Coffee Festival 2016

Having missed the inaugural Edinburgh Coffee Festival last year, I was excited to get along to this year's event held at Summerhall as it had outgrown Mansfield Traquair. Previous engagements meant I arrived quite late and had missed all the talks and workshops which was a shame.

I was assured the coffee cocktail workshop involved many delicious cocktails, so will have to look out for that returning next year!

It was great to chat to some familiar faces, such as Mr Eion and the folk at Burr & Co. where I'd recently been for a lovely lunch. As well as get to meet some new faces, such as the folk behind Alfie, who are using an air drum roasting technique. It was one of the cleanest cups of coffee I've tasted, will definitely be ordering from the website when I next run out of beans!

Really enjoyed chatting to the folk at Johan & Nystrom from Sweden. Their limited edition Gigisa Lot5 was fantastic as was their bottled iced teas! Their loose leaf tea tins were adorable but unfortunately not for sale at the festival.

They weren't the only ones there offering both coffee & tea, Edinburgh Tea and Coffee Company also had their wares on show. Tea lovers were not left wanting though as Pekoe Tea and Shibui Tea both had impressive selections to taste and choose from.

Tasty Buns Bakery were pretty much sold out of treats by the time I got there, but I did sneak an amaretti biscuit which was divine! Luckily Pinnes & Poppyseeds still had a healthy supply of Pumpkin Spice Caramel Cups to satiate my sweet cravings. The Chocolate Tree and The Marshmallow Lady were also on hand to supply sweet treats.

Rost were there with their food truck but I couldn't pass on a burger from Jones & Sons!

Overall, I had a fantastic couple of hours at the festival, even if my companion did throw a cup of coffee over me! Will hopefully have more time to explore next year. Although it was apparently much busier earlier in the day and it was difficult to actually stop and speak to exhibitors, so maybe arriving late had its perks!