The Burnham-On-Sea based team who run eat:Festivals are celebrating after their Bristol festival, eat:Bedminster, was shortlisted for two national awards.
Organisers Bev and Sarah Milner Simonds run Burnham’s food festival and scores of others across the region, including eat:Bedminster.
The Bristol event has been shortlisted in two categories at the NOEA (National Outdoor Events Association) awards for ‘Best Regional Event of the Year’ and ‘Event of the Year’.
The judges for the awards commented that, “Not only have we seen the largest level of competition in the award’s 20-year history, the quality of the entries, the events, the companies and the people that have been put forward have been exceptional.”
“We have commented in the past that just getting onto the shortlist of the NOEA (National Outdoor Events Association) awards should be seen as a high achievement, this is never more true than this year and we congratulate everyone who has been put forward. These were tough awards to judge!”
eat:Bedminster is a one-day food and drink festival that embraces the full length of East Street in Bristol. Over 80 local food & drink producers (nearly half from within 10 miles of Bedminster), entertainers and artists are showcased at this free to attend festival that has happened three times in the past 18 months.
Co-organiser Bev Milner Simonds says: “We are delighted to see this city-based festival recognised by the National Outdoor Events Association. eat:Bedminster has been a labour of love for us; working with local partners to bring some pride [and many thousands of visitors] back into East Street.”
“East Street is one of the oldest High Streets in the UK and being able to showcase the awesome businesses alongside some of the best, locally made and award-winning food & drink producers has been a very popular choice with retailers, visitors and producers. We are looking forward to the award’s night and, fingers crossed, getting support to allow us to deliver the festival again in 2023.”
Ruth Green, Manager of Bedminster BID, adds: “It’s been wonderful to see the tremendous success of eat:Bedminster. We’ve had a great response from traders and the community to the quality of the food producers and stall holders that come along and it’s been buzzing with thousands of extra people on East Street.”
“In collaboration with the City Centre and High Streets Recovery and Renewal programme, through Bristol City Council, we’re pleased to have been able to bring eat:Festival to Bedminster to complement the great traders in the area.”
The Annual Convention and Awards Dinner will be held in the Roman Baths and Pump Rooms, Bath, 22nd November and will see the eat:Festivals team battle it out in the Best Regional Event of the Year and Event of the Year categories.
