The full line-up has been revealed for the Nelson Food & Drink Festival, with celebrity chefs, mouth-watering street food, live entertainment and plenty of free family activities heading to Nelson Town Centre.
The popular free-to-attend festival returns on Saturday 12th September, running from 11am until 5pm and promising a packed day of food, entertainment and activities for all ages.
Sponsored by Nelson Town Council and Nelson-based Sugden Processing Equipment, the festival is expected to once again attract thousands of visitors to the town centre.
Food lovers will be spoilt for choice, with a huge variety of food, drink and craft stalls lined up for the day. Visitors can tuck into everything from spiral potatoes and wood-fired pizza to Greek street food, jerk chicken and rice, mini-Dutch pancakes, ice cream, snow cones and boba, alongside coffee and plenty more.
New for 2026 is the Rising Stars Market, created to give the next generation of local entrepreneurs their moment in the spotlight.
Young business owners under the age of 25 have been offered the opportunity to showcase their businesses at the festival completely free of charge, giving visitors the chance to discover and support some exciting new talent.
One of the biggest attractions of this year’s festival will be a full programme of live cooking demonstrations featuring celebrity chefs Zaynah Din and Naem Rafiq.
Best-selling author and TikTok star Zaynah will get the demonstrations underway at 11:30am with Aloo & Cheese Stuffed Naan.
At 12:30pm, Naem, founder and pitmaster behind PitBoyz Smokehouse in Brierfield, will take centre stage for a brisket masterclass, sharing the techniques, flavours and passion behind award-winning smoked BBQ.
Zaynah returns at 1:30pm to prepare Chilli Garlic Chicken, a flavour-packed Indo-Chinese fusion stir fry, before Naem is back at 2:30pm to reveal the results of his slow-smoked brisket masterclass and transform it into an irresistible loaded brisket mac and cheese.
The final cooking demonstration of the day takes place at 3:30pm, when Zaynah will prepare a delicious Channa masala.
And the entertainment continues beyond the kitchen. At 4pm, the festival will come alive with the sights and sounds of Dhol drummers and Bhangra dancers, bringing an energetic finale to the day’s programme.
Families will find plenty to keep younger visitors entertained too, with free face painting and free henna available throughout the festival.
Children aged under 12 can also take part in the Nelson Food & Drink Festival Shop Trail, which encourages families to explore some of the fantastic independent businesses around the town centre.
Youngsters need to visit eight participating businesses, collect a stamp at each one and then post their completed entry into the special box in the main festival marquee to be in with a chance of winning a prize.
Entry booklets have been delivered to local schools and will also be available from the main marquee on the day.
Taking part in this year’s trail are Brunch Corner, Café Riwa, Microtech, Cha Cha Chai, Dubai Shawarma, Your Girl Can Bake, Dels Hair and Coco.
There are some fantastic prizes up for grabs, including a £50 Café Riwa voucher, a £30 Brunch Corner voucher and a £30 Cha Cha Chai voucher.
Councillor Sughra Bibi, Events Chair at Nelson Town Council, said: “The Nelson Food & Drink Festival is always an incredibly popular day for the town, with people coming along in their thousands to enjoy the fantastic atmosphere.
“This year there is so much going on, from our celebrity chef demonstrations and brilliant food and drink traders to the new Rising Stars Market, live entertainment and lots of free activities for families.
“It is a wonderful opportunity to bring people together, showcase Nelson and support our local businesses at the same time. There really is something for everyone, so get down to Nelson Town Centre and join in the fun. We can’t wait to welcome you.”
The Nelson Food & Drink Festival takes place from 11am to 5pm on Saturday 12th September in Nelson Town Centre and is free to attend.
To keep up to date with the festival, visit www.nelsonfoodfestival.co.uk
