Truro Food Festival returns this month with more than 30 chefs, live music, street food and a series of new intimate dining events. The festival takes over Lemon Quay from Wednesday to Sunday, September 23 to 27, offering five days of food, drink, live cooking and entertainment. The main daytime festival is free to attend.
Michelin-starred chef Adam Handling, MBE, will make his debut at the event. The man behind Ugly Butterfly in Newquay and The Tartan Fox pub at Summercourt will be joined in the Chef's Theatre by a host of chefs from Cornwall and beyond, including Kate Attlee of Sabzi, Nisha Parmar, Ayesha Kalaji of Queen of Cups, Stephane Delourme, Ben Prior of Porthminster Beach Café, Charlie Walters of Narla, Andi Tuck of The Tartan Fox and Adam Kesakoff of The Aussie Smoker.
The Chef's Theatre is getting a major makeover this year, moving into two linked tipis on Lemon Quay. A purpose-built demonstration kitchen will provide the setting for five days of live cooking, bringing festival-goers closer to the chefs and allowing visitors to watch demonstrations throughout the day for free. Big Green Egg will return as a festival partner, bringing live-fire cooking to both the daytime demonstrations and the festival's brand-new evening dining experiences.
One of the biggest additions for 2026 will begin when the daytime cooking comes to an end. The Chef's Tipi will be transformed into an intimate dining space for a series of Chef's Table Feasts, with just 30 guests able to attend each evening. The three-course feasts, which include a welcome drink, will take place on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Thursday, September 24, will see Bango Kitchen serve up a pan-Asian feast featuring sushi, Korean BBQ and live-fire cooking. On Friday, September 25, Nisha Parmar will team up with Cornwall's Woodfired Canteen for an evening centred around Indian-inspired food, fire and sharing. The final feast on Saturday, September 26, will feature New Zealand-born Māori chef Matthew Burgess, known as matblak, alongside Woodfired Canteen. The evening will draw on Māori food culture, cooking over fire and storytelling around the table. Tickets cost £85 per person and must be booked separately.
While some of the festival's biggest names are travelling to Truro, Cornwall's independent food and drink scene will remain at the heart of the event. The Producer Village will return to Lemon Quay, bringing together independent producers, growers and makers, while a dedicated Street Food area will serve up dishes inspired by Cornwall and cuisines from around the world. Live music will run throughout the festival, with the Live Music Stage and Street Food area supported this year by The Buttermarket in Redruth.
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The Grade II-listed market building is home to Cornwall's first food hall, which features six independent kitchens alongside a bar, live music, markets and events. There will also be a new Festival Bar on Lemon Quay, with drinks partners including St Ives Brewery, Budvar and Navas Drinks.
Visitors wanting to get more hands-on can also take part in an expanded programme of workshops, created in collaboration with Truro School Cookery School. For the first time ever, the school is partnering with the festival to host two exclusive, intimate masterclasses. Food lovers will get the rare opportunity to cook alongside MasterChef's Nisha Parmar and renowned chef matblak.
Festival organiser Stewart Girvan said the event aims to celebrate Cornwall's food and hospitality scene while also bringing chefs and visitors from further afield into the city.
Truro Food Festival’s Return Brings Michelin-Starred Chef and Evening Feasts