Castle Food & Drink Fest Brings Festive Market and Family Fun to Newcastle-under-Lyme

Newcastle-under-Lyme BID, in collaboration with Independent Street, bring their winter edition of Castle Food & Drink Fest to the town centre on Saturday 13th December, with a full day of Christmas shopping, street food, creative workshops and family friendly entertainment from 10am–4pm.

The event will see the town centre filled with independent market traders, hot seasonal food, free activities and live music, creating a vibrant Christmas atmosphere and offering a welcome boost to local businesses during the key festive period.

Families can take part in hands on workshops delivered by Real Food School, who will host a Make-Your-Own Christmas Snack Station throughout the day. Children and adults can craft themed treats, exploring seasonal ingredients through touch, smell and taste.

Additional free activities include free face painting from 11am–3pm and drop in festive crafts, alongside a special visit from Santa’s elves from 1pm and live music from Chris Tavener.

Visitors can expect wood-fired pizza, gourmet burgers, Greek street food, toasties, hotdogs and world flavours from Anatolian Cuisine Handmade Ltd and Flippin Good. Sweet options include brownies, cakes, pastries, scones, milkshakes and seasonal desserts, while A Grape Pairing and The Wandering Spirit will serve mulled wine, mulled cider and winter warmers.

Artisan and speciality stalls will offer handcrafted gifts, candles, prints, speciality teas, 3D creations, fragrances and festive items. Pet owners will also find natural dog and cat products just in time for Christmas.

Charlotte Pearce, Newcastle-under-Lyme BID Manager:

“Christmas is a vital time for our town centre and for the traders and businesses who keep it vibrant throughout the year. By hosting events like this on a Saturday, we’re able to attract more visitors into Newcastle, creating an atmosphere that supports everyone, from our independent shops and hospitality venues to the market traders on The Stones. Castle Food & Drink Fest also highlights the strength of Newcastle-under-Lyme’s independent retail offer. With businesses such as Sparrowhawk Vintage, Timothy Gutteridge, Pockets, Tea & Pantry and Crepz Club to name a few, the town provides fantastic Christmas gift opportunities alongside the market programme. As well as enjoying the festive market, visitors can explore our brilliant local businesses and take part in new activities such as the Real Food School workshops.

Our previous Food & Drink Fest events have been really well attended and we’re looking forward to welcoming people into the town to shop local.”

The event takes place from 10am–4pm across Newcastle-under-Lyme town centre.

The trader line-up includes:

3bee’sprintnstitch, A Grape Pairing, Adored Bespoke Creations, Anatolian Cuisine Handmade Ltd, Arthur’s Pizzeria, Backyard Burgers, Butternut Box, MARRO, Cheese Meets Toast, Flippin Good, Greek St Food, Henry’s Hotdogs, Lasermaze, Little Larissa’s, M3 Marketing on behalf of Dogs Trust, Nourish by Sumith, Pure Pet Food, Saddleworth Brownies, Sally’s Baked with Love!, Scentric Fragrances, SCONESBYANOUSKA, Shakes on the Rocks, Stardust Bakery, Sweet Whispers, Tealicious, The Cheshire Bakehouse, The Wandering Spirit, TOGO 3D, Velora, Vickys Bakes and Wag & Wild.

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