The 5-day food fest kicks off today!
It’s almost time for Cork on a Fork Festival, which kicks off today, Wednesday 14th August and runs until Sunday. The five day festival is organised by Cork City Council in partnership with most of the businesses in the city, all working together to showcase Cork’s world class food culture, hospitality businesses, incredible home-grown produce, and outstanding producers.
If you haven’t already got your hands on tickets for some of the delicious events taking place, don’t worry. There are loads of free events, many of which don’t even need to be booked.
Here is a round up of free events taking place at the Cork on a Fork Food Festival worth checking out!
1. Cork on a Fork Cooking Demo Marquee
The hub of the festival is on Emmet Place this weekend. Enjoy cooking demos from 11.00am-5.30pm on Saturday and Sunday at a pop up festival marquee outside the Cork Opera House.
There will also be a pop up children’s play street with Let’s Play Cork and free face painting from 11am-4pm. The events are free to attend, sponsored by Cork City Council, Fáilte Ireland, Ireland’s Ancient East and the Wild Atlantic Way, and no booking is required.
DEMOS SATURDAY 17th August:
- 11am: Full of Beans! – the bountiful and beautiful world of beans: Cork’s very own Bean Queen and #BeansIsHow champion, Ali Honour, will let loose in the kitchen with beans grown by Cork Rooftop Farm creating dishes that are sweet, savoury and drinkable too, demonstrating the variety and versatility of beans as a nutritious and protein rich food. MC’d by Kate Ryan of Flavour.ie
- 12pm: Pasta Making with Hells Kitchen USA Winner Ryan O’Sullivan: Ryan O’Sullivan is one of Cork’s most famous chefs, the latest winner of Hell’s Kitchen USA. Ryan will demo pasta making.
- 1pm: A 3 Course Meal in 45 Minutes with Rachel Allen, Ballymaloe Cooking School: Get a tantalising taste of Ballymaloe Cookery School and Cork produce with bestselling cookery writer, TV chef and celebrated culinary teacher Rachel Allen. Rachel will do a quick 3-course meal that can be cooked in less than 45 mins as people don’t have time to spend in the kitchen anymore.
- 2pm: Young Culinary Rebels kitchen takeover: A fun cooking demo with Cork’s young chefs, who are making a big impact on Irish cooking. Jerome Williamson of Eco Fish, Nascimento Pereira Nunes from Paladar and more will join the Irish Examiner’s senior food writer Joe McNamee on stage for cooking and fun.
- 3pm: Easy Family Suppers with Clodagh McKenna: Clodagh McKenna, one of Cork’s most famous chefs, will host a cooking demo featuring three easy family supper recipes, followed by a book signing.
- 4pm: How to Cook for Restrictive Diets with Rob Fitzpatrick, Market Lane: Learn how to cook for restrictive diets: including dairy free, gluten free and vegan alternatives.
- 4.45pm: How to Make the Perfect BBQ Sausage with Harrison Sharpe, Elbow Lane Smokehouse & Brewery: Learn how to make the perfect BBQ sausage from Cork’s very own smokehouse expert.
DEMOS SUNDAY 18TH AUGUST
- 11am: I Soiled My Plants! With CUSP, My Goodness and Green Cities for Health; A talk, cookery demo and tasting looking at the Cork Urban Soil Project (CUSP) with My Goodness, Green Cities for Health and Kate Ryan from Flavour.ie. Virginia O’Gara, co-founder of My Goodness at the English Market, will share how food scraps become soil and become food again (CUSP) and cook with vegetables grown in soil made at CUSP from food waste. Denise Cahill and Maria Young from Green Cities for Health will talk about Cork’s urban community gardens and why it’s important to grow more food in urban spaces and school gardens, and how together we can grow more delicious food utilising would-be-food-waste in the city.
- 12pm: Bread and Fishes with Aishling Moore (Goldie) and Ryan Hoy (Pike Deli): Enjoy a celebration of summer fish and handmade breads with Aishling Moore, chef-proprietor of Goldie Fish & Ale and Ryan Hoy, chef/baker/co-founder of Pike Deli, MC’d by Kate Ryan from Flavour.ie. Learn expert fish filleting techniques from the best in the business and how to prepare mackerel a few different ways – cured, smoked, paté and pan fried, and learn how to bake the perfect bread pairings and zero food waste breadcrumb crackers.
- 1pm: Easy Family Suppers with Clodagh McKenna: Clodagh McKenna, one of Cork’s most famous chefs, will host a cooking demo featuring three easy family supper recipes, followed by a book signing.
- 2pm: Cork on a…Stick! – Cork Chef Cook-Off with a twist! This fun chef cook-off will create a taste of Cork on a…Stick with chefs leading the food scene in Cork, who are not originally from Cork! Taking part are head chef of St Francis Provisions, Rebeca Recarey Sanchez (Cork via Madrid), Victor Franca of Nua Asador (Cork via Brazil), Chris Braganza of Spice Genie (Cork via Goa, India), and Shauna Murphy of Terre (Cork via Co Limerick). The event will be MC’d by Kate Ryan from Flavour.ie. The challenge? To each create a taste of Pure Cork into a tasty single bite using the best of Cork produce – just like the famed Pintxos of Basque country – but Cork, like!
- 3pm: A Michelin Mashup with Chestnut and Ichigo Ichie: Join Joe McNamee, Senior Food writer at the Irish Examiner, as he MCs this fun and lively cooking demo with two of Cork’s Michelin starred chefs: Chef Takashi Miyazaki from Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant Ichigo Ichie in Cork City and Chef Rob Krawczyk, owner and head chef of Michelin-starred Restaurant Chestnut in Ballydehob.
- 4pm: More Than Curry with Meeran Manzoor (Rare 1784): Enjoy a journey through the rich culinary heritage of India with Meeran Manzoor, MC’d by Kate Ryan from Flavour.ie.
- 5pm: Leftover Larder Love – zero waste demo with Orla McAndrew: This insightful zero waste cookery demo will show you how to make the most of your leftovers with a little love from your larder. Learn how to create a feast from basic ingredients. Orla McAndrew is an award winning zero waste wedding and event caterer. She is a TV chef, recipe contributor, podcaster, speaker, writer and mother of three young girls. Orla celebrates the very best of seasonal Irish produce in all that she does and works tirelessly to promote the efforts of Irish food producers.
2. Cork on a Fork Drinks Stage: Bar Chats and Tastings
For the first time, the festival is hosting a number of free ‘Bar Chats’ and tastings with the local drinks industry at the Cork Opera House from 1pm-6pm over the weekend. Events are free but registration is required. These include:
- Irish Distillers & Irish Pints: Join Kate Ryan from Flavour.ie as she chats all things drinks with Carol Quinn, archivist at Irish Distillers, Ali Dunworth, food, drink and travel writer and author of Irish Pints. Kate Dempsey of Kinsale Mead and Bhagya Barrett of Rebel City Distillery. Saturday 4-5pm.
- Whiskey Chats Live Podcast: Host Laurie O’Dwyer will be joined by Barry Walsh from Killahora Orchards, Cork Whiskey Society President and wine expert Liam Murray, and Mark Lonergan, ex-manager of The Shelbourne whiskey bar & now drinks consultant. They will have a bit of craic and great chat around a table about an amazing array of drinks, being shared & sampled with the audience. Sunday 1.30pm-3pm.
- The Craft and Tradition of Irish Whiskey, in conversation with Noel Sweeney: Did you ever wonder what’s involved in the Irish whiskey making process? Pop along and listen to a fascinating chat with Master Distiller Noel Sweeney. Noel has worked with the biggest distilleries in the country and most recently collaborated with Michael Flatley on Flatley Whiskey: The Dreamer- which you can taste at the event. Sunday 3.30pm-4pm.
- Tastings will also take place in the lobby with Kinsale Mead, Five Farms, Flatley Whiskey, West Cork Distillers, Irish Distillers, and Rebel City Distillery (Maharini Gin). Saturday 17th August and Sunday 18th August 1-6pm.
3. English Market cooking demo with Chef Orla McAndrew
Award-winning Cork Chef Orla McAndrew will indulge visitors to the English Market with a cookery demonstration and sampling outside the building on Grand Parade. Committed to sustainability and a ‘zero-waste ethos’ Orla will be using a range of fresh, local ingredients from the stalls of the renowned English Market to create seasonal tasting and sharing plates – perfect for summer gatherings.
12.00pm- to 2.00pm, Thursday 15th August, Outside the English Market on Grand Parade.
4. Bread, Butter and Beef Workshop and Family Fun at The Butter Museum
The Butter Museum at Shandon is the place to be on Friday afternoon. Taking place outside the Museum, the event includes a demo of traditional soda bread and butter, and a talk from local butcher James Nolan on corned beef.
2.30pm-4.30pm, Friday 16th August, The Butter Museum, Shandon.
5. Street Food Demo from Different Cultures at Cork City Library
Enjoy cooking demonstrations from different cultures featuring Brazilian Tapas and Sushi with Esther and Maria from the Marina Market. There will also be a gorgeous collection of cookery books available to borrow.
6.30pm, Friday 16th August outside Cork City Library on the Grand Parade.
6. ‘A Resilient Local Food System for Cork’ with Cork Food Policy Council
Curious about what a resilient local food system can look like for Cork? Join Cork Food Policy at Cork on a Fork Fest for the launch of their public consultation phase of the creation of a Sustainable & Healthy Food Policy for Cork City. Supported by Good Day Deli and Supervalu.
The event takes place at Good Day Deli within the Nano Nagle Centre on Thursday 15th August from 5.30pm-7.00pm This event is free but places must be reserved in advance Book here
7. Knocknaheeny Hollyhill Community Garden
Join Knocknaheeny Community Garden for a delightful day where you can pick fresh produce from the garden, enjoy live music and much more. Open to all, this event invites people to come together to celebrate the spirit of community and the joy of gardening.
Takes place 1-4pm, Thursday 15th August, Knocknaheeny, Hollyhill Community Garden (behind Apple Green garage). Free Event.
8. Food Fun and Farm at Cornmarket Street Market
Pop down to the Cornmarket Street (Coal Quay) Market this Saturday from 11am-3pm, enjoy light bites on the street and everyone can have lots of fun with farm animals, facepainting and giant Jenga, connect four, corn hole, balance board games, colour catcher games, tug of war and more, with our Let’s Play Cork play leaders. Note: this is not supervised play and parents are responsible for children.
This takes place from 11am-4pm on Saturday 17th August, Coal Quay and is a free event.