What to expect from this year's Seaham Food Festival

Visitors will be able to tuck into food and drink from more than 100 traders and producers as the event takes over Terrace Green on Saturday, August 7 and Sunday, August 8.

The inaugural event took place in 2019 and drew huge crowds, but last year’s event had to be called off due to the pandemic. It’s hoped this year’s festival will be a return to form, with people hungry to take a bite out of local produce.

Many of the traders are from Seaham itself.

Staff from The Lamp Room, one of North Terrace’s most popular restaurants, will be serving up dishes grilled on their Josper oven, including fresh lobster, Korean pork ribs and chicken fajita flatbread.

Melanie Wood, who owns the eaterie with husband Russ, said: “We’ve invested in a Josper Oven for this year’s event, so we can keep up with demand for dishes. We’ll be doing a lot of the dishes we’re famous for, such as lobster.

"So many of the traders come from Seaham and it’s a great to showcase what we have here. There’s already a lot of great businesses, but there’s also so much happening at the minute such as the building work on the old Harbour view site and the old snooker club becoming a restaurant, so it can only get better.”

Another of the local traders is David Richardson, of The Canny Candy Gadgies, who’ll be selling bags of locally-made fudges, brittle, honeycomb and more.

His sweet treats, made using traditional methods, are sold in outlets and hotels across the North, but he says it’s great to be part of something on his doorstep.

David said: “We traded at the first event and because the Saturday was cancelled due to the weather, everyone came on the Sunday. We sold four days of stock in that one day and there was a lot of local support. It was fantastic to see that response from the local area, as well as all the support from the other traders.

"We service a lot of tourist outlets, so we already have a great relationship with the council. As soon as they asked if we wanted to be part of this year’s event we jumped at the chance.”

Jenny Connor owns Dalton Moor Farm in Dalton-le-Dale, an award-winning organic fruit farm, and she’ll be selling juices, vinegar and sweet and savoury preserves made using fruit from her orchards, as well as hand-made crafts.

The farm also specialises in regenerating wildlife habitats and its products are mostly sold in markets, cafes and in the Discovering Durham shop in Durham City Centre.

Jenny said: “We had a stand at the first festival, which was fantastic, so we’re looking forward to being back.”

As well as the stalls, visitors can enjoy demonstrations from famous faces in the cookery world, as well as performances from Easington Colliery Band, children’s creative workshops, walkabout theatre acts and more.

The free festival is a key part of Durham County Council’s festival and events programme, which plays a vital role in supporting the region’s economic recovery from the impact of the pandemic.

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