Much like going to your local markets or one of those trendy restaurants insistent on providing you the providence of every ingredient, food festivals are a great opportunity to learn about your produce – and where it comes from.
They were hit hard by the pandemic, every bite-sized cheese cube and little shot glass of wine becoming a potential petri dish.
But many food fairs across Australia are making a return in 2023. From small towns to major cities, here’s a month-by-month guide of the best festivals to wine, dine, and play chef.
January
Geelong’s Great Australian beer festival, Geelong, Victoria
20 - 21 January
Geelong’s happy, hoppy jamboree will turn 10 this year, and they’re pouring over 200 craft beers and ciders to celebrate, with breweries and distilleries from around the country. There’s also live music and plenty of food stalls, serving the dream bar snacks: smoked meats, German sausages and bao buns.
February
Meeniyan garlic festival, south Gippsland, Victoria
18 February
If you are the kind of person who adds five cloves of garlic when the recipe calls for one, a trip to Meeniyan – on the road to picturesque Wilson’s Promontory – may be well worth considering. Alongside other local produce and live music, you’ll get to see – and taste – the surprising range of garlic varieties you can cultivate in Australia. You’ll also learn how to grow your own, courtesy of a line-up of gurus from the Garlic Institute.
March
Herb and chilli festival, Wandin, Yarra Valley, Victoria
18 - 19 March
Hot sauce has made a roaring comeback in recent times; no longer the Tabasco tucked away on the shelf, it’s now produced by plenty of small-batch artisans. Wandin’s annual celebration of heat has been on the beat for over a decade; next year, their 11th, will once again feature dozens of chilli vendors and demonstrations. There’s also a chilli eating competition for the brave.
Orange F.O.O.D week, Orange, New South Wales
24 March - 2 April
F.O.O.D – that’s Food of the Orange District – is one of Australia’s longest running regional food festivals, going into its 31st year in 2023. It’s also one of the most extensive, with 10 days of workshops, tastings, vineyard visits, long lunches and markets. Those after a particularly luxe experience can catch the F.O.O.D train from Sydney to Orange – like the Ghan, but shorter and tastier – or embark on a walking trail with an eight-course degustation.
April
Robertson Potato festival, Robertson NSW
29 – 30 April
Of all the big objects in Australia, Robertson’s Big Potato might be the most maligned; there are only so many ways to make an extremely brown object look appealing at 10 metres tall. Even so, it wields a certain charm, much like the humble spud itself – the centre of this nascent festival which is now in its second year. Eat potato in every way we know how, race in potato sacks, and take to the runway in the Hessian on the Field competition. And when you’re done, you’ll have the greater Southern Highlands to explore.
May
Narooma Oyster festival, Narooma, New South Wales
5 May – 6 May.
Close to Bateman’s Bay and Moruya on the NSW south coast, Narooma’s bright blue seas are the backdrop to to the oyster festival, which has seen 70,000 fresh and cooked oysters consumed in a weekend full of shucking competitions, premium dining experiences and fireworks over the inlet. Once you’re sick of slurping, you can also try the variety of other treats on offer: abalone, urchins, and kelp.
Taste of Kakadu, Kakadu national park, Northern Territory
13 May – 21 May
Most food festivals are sites of pure Bacchanalian indulgence – not this one, which promises an experience as edifying as it is edible. It’s located in the world heritage-listed Kakadu National Park, whose sprawling bushlands become the setting for Indigenous cuisine and bush tucker, a food-themed art show painted en plein air, and demonstrations of native crafts.
Mould cheese festival, Brisbane, Queensland
12 May – 14 May
Lovers of stinky cheese rejoice: at last, a safe haven for all things sharp and pungent, taking place across four cities. The team behind the festival know their stuff – they also run a monthly subscription service freighting cheese to doorsteps – and there’ll be enough stalls to fill a cooler bag.
After its run in Brisbane, Mould comes to Sydney on 30 June – 1 July and Melbourne on 2 June – 4 June. They’re also running a collaboration with wine festival Pinot Palooza in Perth on 25 August - 27 August.
Melbourne’s Good Food and Wine festival will take place from 19 to 21 May.
June
MudgeeQue, Mudgee, NSW
3 June
It’s one of the first food festivals to kick off winter and the vibe is set: meat smoked on the barbecue and mulled wine to enjoy in the crisp evening air, with an array of Mudgee’s local wine, food and music to keep you warm. Also warming: the dancefloor set up in a paddock where you can boogie the chill away.
Truffle Kerfuffle, Manjimup, Western Australia
23 – 25 June
Manjimup accounts for 90% of Australia’s black truffle harvest – which makes it the natural host for a truffle festival with a bit of luxury. There are the usual suspects – tastings, demonstrations, and decadent meals – as well as the chance to go on your own expedition with the best truffle dogs in the biz. While you’re there, check out the Greater Beedelup National Park, known for its dramatic mist.
The Good Food and Wine festival in Sydney will also take place in June 2023.
July
Huon Valley mid-winter festival, Huonville, Tasmania
14 – 15 July
Tasmania’s Huon Valley would be the perfect location for a folk horror (Ari Aster, take notes): home to both apple-picking and age-old traditions which border on the macabre. Each July, the region celebrates its history by setting a giant wooden figure ablaze. And it only gets more Wicker Man from there: at the core of its mid-winter festival is a wassail ceremony, which sees attendees sing and make noise to ward off evil spirits haunting the orchards. Amid the revelry you might forget that there is actual food on offer: apples, lots of them, and local cider.
Tassie Scallop Fiesta, Bridport, Tasmania
30 July
For a very different and definitely not cult-y Tasmanian experience, try this scallop festival in the fishing town of Bridport, which rings in the Tasmanian fishing season for everyone from mariners to market-goers. In true Tassie style, it also also includes the judging of the best scallop pies and a much-anticipated scallop splitting challenge.
The Good Food and Wine festival in Perth will take place from 21 July to 23 July.
August
Baconfest, Kingroy, Queensland
18 – 20 August
Bacon’s glory days on the internet may be long over – but does bacon ever really go away? Not at Baconfest in Kingroy, three hours out from Brisbane, where the sizzling side becomes the star of the plate. This three-day celebration of pork sees bacon fries and bacon ice-cream take centre stage with plenty of opportunity to – ahem – pig out.
Festa delle Salsicce, Griffith, New South Wales
August, TBC
Festival of the sausage is what that name means in Italian, and it’s an honouring of one specific sausage: salami. Griffith, known as the food bowl of Australia due to its rich agriculture industry, brings together meat lovers for one huge competition pitting salami-maker against salami-maker until only the best cold cut remains. There were 150 entries last year – all enjoyed over a long lunch with homemade Italian food. Griffith is also home to Spring Fest in October, renowned for its citrus sculptures.
September
Redfest strawberry festival, Cleveland, Queensland
2 – 3 September
A strawberry eating competition may not sound as impressive as, say, a chilli guzzling battle. A berry is too tasty, you might think, too easy to eat – and you would be right, though Redfest’s strawberry contest is still a spectacle to behold, mainly because its young participants have to tuck into the plate of strawberries and cream before them – sans hands. After your kids have finished embarrassing themselves on stage, you can gorge on strawberries yourself, or stay for the fireworks display in the evening.
October
Oyster Fest, Ceduna, South Australia
30 September – 1 October
On the more luxurious end of proceedings is this Labor Day festival in Ceduna, on the west coast of the Eyre peninsula. Attracting 5,000 registrations in 2022, the festival congregates on the Murat Bay foreshore, where you can indulge in champagne and local oysters. Ceduna also does its own spin on a Kilpatrick recipe, which adds grated cheese to a traditional topping of bacon and Worcestershire sauce.
The Good Food and Wine festival in Brisbane will also return in October 2023.
November
Stanthorpe berry festival, Stanthorpe, Queensland
18 November
New to the festival scene, Stanthorpe berry festival started in 2021. While there is a focus on the strawberry (and famous strawberry ice-cream) there are punnets of every berry on offer, and a chance to explore the mountains of the surrounding Great Dividing range. For inexplicable reasons, last year also included a hot wings eating competition – but who’s complaining?
December
National cherry festival, Young, New South Wales
1 – 3 December
Two hours from Canberra, Young is Australia’s cherry capital – and its cherry festival has a whopping 74 years of history to prove it. The festival kicks off Young’s cherry harvesting season each summer with shed door sales and ‘pick your own’ orchards across the region.
It’s also home to the coronation of the town’s famous cherry king and queen: a time-honoured community tradition appointing young ambassadors for the region who will take part in fundraising and local events over the following year.
