Parklands Food Fest looking for ‘best in the west’

Published: 30 April 2018 at 12:00 am

Make it? Bake it? Grow it? Show it!

Western Sydney Parklands wants the ‘best in the west’ to take centre stage at its flagship event, Parklands Food Fest, in September.

Parklands Food Fest 2018 will take place on 8 September at Lizard Log recreation area, in Horsley Park. It is the pre-eminent event for Western Sydney food lovers.

Parklands Executive Director, Suellen Fitzgerald, said the call was going out to ‘local hero’ food businesses to be stallholders at the popular event with its focus on the Homegrown.

“If you’re a Western Sydney food business, Parklands Food Fest is the perfect opportunity to put your best on show for a hungry, local audience,” Ms Fitzgerald said.

“Parklands Food Fest attracts thousands and thousands of visitors each year, from across Western Sydney and beyond, so this is the ideal market for Western Sydney food businesses.

“We want to hear from restaurants, food trucks, bakers, smallgoods manufacturers and farmers of fresh produce.

“We also want to hear from people who sell food the public can take home, such as pickles and preserves, bottled sauces or other home-made packaged foods.

“We are taking applications from prospective stallholders from across Sydney and beyond, but we have a special affection for businesses with strong links to the Western Sydney community.

“We are expecting up to 10,000 visitors this year, three‑quarters of whom will come from the Fairfield, Blacktown and Liverpool local government areas, so it’s a perfect market for Western Sydney businesses.

“A visitor survey conducted on site at last year’s event found people spent more than $50 per head, on average, and Parklands Food Fest offers very competitive stallholder rates,” Ms Fitzgerald said.

At last year’s event, Western Sydney stallholders and exhibitors included:

• Food trucks with cuisines from Vietnam, Central America, Mexico and the Philippines
• Food stalls with cuisines from Korea, the Balkans, Vietnam, Turkey, Lebanon and Spain
• Lemonade and beverage stands, a honey maker, a flower grower and smallgoods maker
• Fresh produce from within Western Sydney Parklands’ urban farms precinct in Horsley Park
• Coffee and dessert stalls in the dedicated Sweet Spot

To find out more and apply for a stall, fill out the online application form or call Western Sydney Parklands on 02 9895 7541.