Food Lover’s Heaven at This Weekend’s Comber Earlies Food Festival!

19th June 2024

Comber Leisure Centre Car Park will be transformed into a food-lover’s heaven this Saturday 22 June for the Comber Earlies Food Festival, one of the highlights in Ards and North Down Borough Council’s foodie calendar!

Gavin Murphy (Executive Chef at The Old Inn) with the Mayor of Ards and North Down, Councillor Alistair Cathcart, and Chef Jim Mulholland (Head Chef and Proprietor at No. 14 Georgian House). Image: Simon Graham

Visitors to the free-to-attend Festival are in for a real treat as best-selling cookery writer and TV chef, Rachel Allen, will be joined by experienced broadcaster Lotte Duncan, South Eastern Regional College’s Comber Cookery School and many of the Borough’s local food producers who will be showcasing their delicious products.

Celebrity chef, Rachel Allen, will provide potato-themed cooking demonstrations and you can find out more about our local food producers as they showcase their products with Lotte Duncan on the Food Producers’ Stage. Also at the festival, chefs from South Eastern Regional College (SERC) will run a Comber Cookery School where you can try your hand at creating some delicious dishes using traditional Comber Earlies recipes.

Gavin Murphy (Executive Chef at The Old Inn) with the Mayor of Ards and North Down, Councillor Alistair Cathcart, and Chef Jim Mulholland (Head Chef and Proprietor at No. 14 Georgian House). Image: Simon Graham

The ‘It’s Never Too Early’ hazy pale ale will be available from the Artisan Bar and has been crafted for the Festival after a collaboration between local bar and restaurant, McBride’s on the Square, and independent brewery, Modest. Visitors can sample the new local creation while also enjoying the wealth of artisan food and drink stalls, as well as a vintage tractor display, celebrity chef demos, live music and children’s entertainment.

Enjoy walkabout entertainment, fun with Mr and Mrs Potato Head, ride on tractors, sensory activities and keep an eye out for the golden spuds hidden throughout the event. If you find one, take it to the Visitor Information Caravan (opposite the Leisure Centre entrance) to claim a small prize!

Visitors are encouraged to make the most of their visit and support local business by grabbing a ‘Comber Earlies Passport’. A fantastic 13 local traders will have special offers and giveaways planned throughout the day and the Comber Earlies Passports will guide visitors to participating businesses that have fun activities and giveaways. The Passports can be collected from 11am on Saturday from the Visitor Information Caravan (opposite the Leisure Centre entrance), as well as from the participating retailers. Passport activities are free but are subject to change and availability.

From food and drink to arts, crafts and more, all participating retailers will have activities or giveaways to entertain the kids who visit their shops. Get your Passport stamped when you visit, and if you get stamps from all 13 participating retailers, return the Passport to the Visitor Information Caravan before 5pm to receive a prize!

The Mayor of Ards and North Down, Councillor Alistair Cathcart, said:

“The Comber Earlies Food Festival is a popular event and brings substantial economic benefit which bolsters local traders and supports the local economy. I would like to thank all of the businesses that are involved with the Comber Earlies Food Festival Passport and I am sure it will be a great day for everyone.”

Getting to this Saturday’s Comber Earlies Food Festival has never been easier. Take the stress out of your journey with free return shuttle buses. They will operate three routes and will serve Bangor and Newtownards, Downpatrick and Killyleagh, and Dundonald. A full bus timetable is available from the website.

Alternatively, additional free car parking is available in the town. Comber Leisure Centre car park will be closed from Thursday 20 June to facilitate the event, and Bridge Street Link will be closed to traffic from 11am on Saturday morning, but additional free parking will be available at Second Presbyterian Church and First Comber Church from Thursday, with the addition of Nendrum College on Saturday. Comber Leisure Centre car park will reopen on Sunday at 11am.

The event will operate on-site supervised recycling stations where visitors will be encouraged to dispose their waste. Recycling stations have been successfully used at several events and have resulted in a substantial increase in the amount of recyclable waste being diverted from landfill.

The Comber Earlies Food Festival is open from 11am – 5pm on Saturday 22 June. For more information, go to visitardsandnorthdown.com/TasteSummer.