Food-lovers tried out flavours from across the region at Eat Drink Live New England on Saturday.
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About 500 people explored the stalls, taking in the diverse range of local produce, including goat meat, wine, crepes, kebabs and cupcakes.
“It went fantastic,” organiser Sean Taylor said, adding that the stall owners agreed and most would be back next year.
“[It was] certainly better than I expected. It had a really nice vibe about it. We had local buskers playing,” he said.
“People lingered. They lingered, listened to the music and soaked up the atmosphere”.
The day was so successful, Sean is hoping to expand the event next year, possibly even closing the street to set up a marquee.
I think they were very surprised that exotic mushrooms were grown in the local area.
- Sean Taylor
Food blogger, Donna Mitchell gave a talk on ‘Fabulous Family Food’, presenting comparisons of home-made and commercial products.
“It was really good. She had a lot of tastings of stuff that she makes at home,” Sean said.
Danny Middleton from BEST Food Garden spoke on the garden’s current activities and plans for the future.
“It’s amazing what they're doing up there for the community,” Sean said.
Inverell Community Gardens also gave overviews on their work with the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Support Group. Tasting booths for the Hillbilly and New England Breweries were very popular, as was the cheese-making seminar.
“Jane Bookman from the Brew Shed made some ricotta throughout the presentation. People were able to see how that was done and taste it at the end.”
Sean said people were impressed by the mushrooms from Glenore Cottage in Guyra, which he said were beautiful and fresh.
“I think they were very surprised that exotic mushrooms were grown in the local area.”
Locals continued expanding their waistlines at the seven course Degustation Dinner in the evening, with all food sourced from the stalls.
Sean said chef, Faye Kauter “did a superb job” for the sold-out dinner.
“She and her team and presented a faultless meal,” he said. “I want to thank the sponsors and the Inverell Club committee for all their work.”