The 2017 British Street Food Awards is all about recognising the best of the thousands of new food legends who are selling food on the streets of this fair Isle.
After five regional heats, the 17 best traders in the UK will fight it out to be crowned champion – and win the right to represent the Britain in the augural European Street Food Awards in Berlin.
On the weekend of September 16th and 17th, Mayfield Depot is being repurposed as the centre of the street food world where you can enjoy free tastings of the competition dishes as well as testers of the craft beers involved in GRUB’s craft beer festival, drawn from the best breweries in Manchester and beyond.
The free tasters — introduced as part of the BSFA’s new ‘mad minute’ — will mean the people of Manchester get to try everything before voting for the People’s Choice. A guest panel, including Andi Oliver (judge on the BBC’s Great British Menu) and Michelin-starred chef Brad Carter, will vote for the Best of the Best. Both winners will go to Berlin where they will take on national winners from France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Sweden, Russia, Ireland and the Netherlands.
Jason Bailey, founder of GRUB said “We’ve worked hard for the last three years to build our events and Manchester’s street food scene so it’s a massive honour for us and a great acknowledgement of our home city to be hosting the British Street Food Award final. It’s going to be magic”.
All across the continent, traders are taking traditional street foods – whether it’s banitsa in Bulgaria, gelato in Italy or churros in Spain – and repurposing them for a new generation. The streets are becoming a laboratory for new food ideas. But which country does it best? At the inaugural European Street Food Awards, I suppose we’ll find out.
2017 British Street Food Awards
Saturday 16th September, 12pm – 10pm
Sunday 17th September, 12pm – 6pm
Tickets £5
GRUB, Mayfield Depot, entrance on Baring Street, M1 2AD
