Street Food Circus has announced the full street food line up for Forest Feastival, the open-air dining experience set among the trees at Candleston Woods on the Merthyr Mawr coast.
Forest Feastival runs for four weekends, including the early May bank holiday from 17 April to 10 May.
The line up includes some of Wales’ best known street food chefs including recent British Street Food Award champions Pasta A Mano and Hakko House, and the return of award-winning chefs, authors and broadcasters Hang Fire BBQ.
What to expect – regular traders and signature dishes
Two new traders are joining the SFC line up for the first time this year, Mama Lala Sichuan street food and Hakko House Japanese street food.
Traders who will be cooking every weekend and their hero dishes are:
- Bao Selecta – pork belly baos
- Ceylon & Beyond – masala croquettes
- El Cabron – quesabirria tacos
- Keralan Karavan – disco fries
- Pasta a Mano – brisket Bolognese
- Smashing Plates – chicken souvlaki wrap
- Two Lads kitchen – Afghan wrap
- The Dough Thrower – Nancy’s meatballs
Classic Hang Fire BBQ dishes are set to make a return specially for Forest Feastival across the early May bank holiday weekend (1-4 May). Their signature slow and low style BBQ fuses their Welsh and Irish roots with smoked Southern US state staples.
Rotating across the four weekends will also be Feast Pembrokeshire, Mar y Fuego, Fire & Flank, The Queen Pepiada, Hakko House, Mama Lala, Burger Bros and ACME. Sweet options will be served by Paletas Mexican-style ice lollies and Drizzle desserts and soft serve.
This year all of the traders will also be creating a dish on their menu specially for kids – smaller in size, but just as big in flavour.
The new children’s dishes are part of a new family focus for this year’s events, which coincides with the launch of the Little Kooks Club, which gives younger festival-goers access to additional activities around the site and a backpack of food-inspired ideas to take home with them. Kid’s tickets (under 16s) for Forest Feastival are free, with the option to join the Little Kooks Club for an additional fee when booking event tickets.
Street Food Circus founder and ‘ringmaster’ Matt the Hat said:
“We’re bringing some serious street food superstars to the forest with us this year, including some who you’ll only find at our events this summer. We’re thrilled to be able to give a welcome to some new traders to the circus this year too and give people the chance to meet the chefs and explore more new cuisines.
“This year we’re going all out to make it a festival for the whole family. We’re in the perfect location to make a great day out, surrounded by woodland and dunes, and we’re excited to be launching our first ever club for kids to give them their very own festival experience, designed just for them,” he said.
Sam & Shauna, founders of Hang Fire BBQ added:
“We’re delighted to be back with the incredible team at Street Food Circus this year, marking the 12th anniversary of our working together. We love their creativity and passion, with a focus on making the best curated food festivals in the UK that are both fun and, of course, delicious – we can’t wait to be back!”
Beyond the food, visitors can expect a big day out in nature with roaming circus performers, a kids’ circus school and marshmallow fire pits. On weekend evenings, the atmosphere shifts to a more grown-up chilled festival feel with guest DJs and drinks around the communal campfire.
