Hastings Seafood and Wine Festival 2008
Locally Sourced Produce Expertly Prepared on the Beach
Sep 9, 2008
Don’t let the name put you off; you don’t need to be a seafood lover or a wine expert to enjoy the Hastings Seafood and Wine Festival on England's beautiful south coast. Although this is only the third year of the annual event, its reputation and popularity has grown. In the inaugural festival in 2006, over 15,000 visitors enjoyed fresh local produce skilfully prepared. Last year that number had doubled.
Locally Sourced Food
Hastings is famous for its fishing fleet which provides a number of local businesses with freshly caught seafood and holds awards from the Marine Stewardship Council. The council will have a stand at this year’s event.
English Wine will also be well represented, and there will be the opportunity to attend lessons in wine tasting from local winemaker Alexander Carr-Taylor.
Hastings is also the home of Judges Bakery an award winning supplier of organic bread, cakes and other foodstuffs, less than five minutes walk from the main festival area.
Ukelele Music and Hastings History
The festival will include a selection of local bands featuring all types of music including jazz, rockabilly and even a local ukulele band! There will also be the chance to take walking tours, exploring the Stade; the beach where the fishing fleet is housed. The festival itself takes place in the shadow of Hastings famous huts; tall, black, wooden structures originally used to hang fishing nets to dry.
Paintings and Crafts
The festival isn’t just about food and wine. As well as the music on offer, there will be the opportunity to see and buy work from local artists and craftspeople. Hastings has a thriving artistic community, and a short walk from the main festival site takes you to the High Street of the Old Town, with an array of galleries displaying an eclectic collection of work.
The festival is a gourmet’s delight with the chance to see demonstrations from local chefs as well as plenty of opportunities to buy and sample top quality local produce.
The event starts at 10 am and is open on both Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd September 2008. Entry to the festival is free and can be part of a great day out or weekend in Hastings. As well as the main festival site, other events are taking place all over the town. The programme is available here.
Hastings is on the South Coast of England. For rail travellers, Hastings is served from Charing Cross and Victoria stations in London, or for those coming along the coast, there is a fast service between Brighton and Ashford International which stops at Hastings.
If travelling by road, the main route south into Hastings is the A21. The coast road (the A259) takes in Hastings seafront and the Stade, the location for this Seafood and Wine Festival.
