Forest Feastival has announced the full trader line-up for its five weekends of flavour.
Running from 19 April to 19 May, Forest Feastival will return to the Merthyr Mawr Estate, bringing its family-friendly global feast to these unique woodlands by the sea.
Two new food zones have been created to help visitors navigate the menu with a Wildfire area dedicated to chefs cooking over open flames and Feasts from the East showcasing the diversity of Asian flavours on offer.
Traders include a mix of familiar Street Food Circus favourites alongside new arrivals like Bristol’s award-winning Gourmet Warriors, Brecon’s Hill’s Burgers and a vintage 1951 Ford Coe truck converted for Westlands BBQ. Rotating across the five weekends will be:
- Bao Selecta – freshly-steamed bao buns
- Bare Bones Pizza – wood-fired pizza and fries
- Ceylon & Beyond – Sri Lankan street food
- El Cabron Tacos – 10-hour braised Birria tacos
- Fire & Flank – sous vide flank steak with cheesy garlic mash
- Gourmet Warriors – award-winning tacos
- Hill’s Burgers – multi-award winners, using some of the best producers in Wales
- Holy Chesus – purveyors of the finest grilled cheese
- Keralan Karavan – unique jazzed up Southern Indian kitchen
- Mandala Street Food – Himalayan-inspired recipes and locally sourced ingredients
- Mr Noodle – introducing a new Korean Fried chicken Ramen
- Packed Sarnies – Chicago-style Italian beef sandwiches, dripping in gravy
- Sin Nombre – fresh tacos, fresh flavours and fresh ingredients
- The Jerk Yard – authentic Jerk chicken and curried goat
- Two Lads Kitchen – authentic Afghan street food
- Westlands BBQ – serving from the Smoking Rat, the world’s only custom built BBQ Hot Rod
And for dessert:
- Church of Churros – buckets of churros and Spanish chocolate sauce
- Minto’s Desserts – patisserie from the Bake off The Professionals winner
- Pwdin – classic puddings like warm Belgian chocolate brownie
- Rebel Crumble – a boozy twist on the traditional crumble
On Friday and Saturday evenings, Forest Feastival After Dark brings the woodlands to life with live music and DJs under the canopy lights or around the communal campfires.
The Street Food Circus team have worked with independent drinks producers to curate a bar offer that matches the food line-ups local and sustainable ethos. That includes partnering with Newport’s Tiny Rebel for beers (including non-alcoholic) on the main bar and local and sustainable spirits from Welsh rum Barti-Du, gin and vodka from B Corp the East London Liquor Co, Fairtrade liquors from Fair and El Sueno sustainable tequila. Bristol’s Bubble Bros will be bringing their frizzante bar offering semi-sparkling wine on tap.
Soft drinks include the launch of a new Street Food Circus brand hibiscus lemonade with 10p from every sale donated to support the Flying Seagull Project, a charity which sends clowns, musicians and entertainers to create safe environments for play and laughter in challenging and desperate situations, in the UK and around the world.
Street Food Circus ringmaster and founder, Matt ‘the Hat’ said:
“We’ve got a great line up with some truly exciting new cooks joining the circus this year – giving visitors the chance to try food from new cuisines, new chefs or restaurants they’ve never had the chance to visit right here in south Wales. Plus to match the innovation and quality of our food offer, we’ve found some really interesting independent drinks producers this year to bring something a bit different to our bars.
“Alongside the food, we’ve put together a great show for Forest Feastival this year, with lots to keep families entertained including circus performers, live music, a kids’ circus school and marshmallow fire pits – plus lots of space to run around and enjoy the woodlands. And this special site is only a short walk from the Big Dipper, Wales’ biggest sand dune, so there’s also lots of scope for exploring the Glamorgan heritage coastline as part of a visit,” he said.
