Melbourne Food and Wine Festival facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Midsumma Festival
Genre	Food and beverage
Location(s)	Melbourne, Australia
Founded	1993
Attendance	225,840 (2019)
Website	https://www.melbournefoodandwine.com.au/

The Melbourne Food and Wine Festival is a big yearly event in Melbourne, Australia. It happens every March and started in 1993. The festival celebrates the amazing food and drinks from Melbourne and the wider Victoria area.

This festival is run by a group that doesn't make a profit. Their main goal is to show off the great food, talented chefs, and fun lifestyle of Melbourne and Victoria. They want Melbourne to be known as Australia's top spot for food and wine! The festival started small but now has many popular events. These include fun cooking classes and huge 'banquet-style' lunches.

About the Festival

The Melbourne Food and Wine Festival is managed by a special board. A small team helps plan all the events. They work closely with people from Victoria's food and wine businesses. This teamwork helps make the festival a big success each year.

Festival History

The Melbourne Food and Wine Festival began in 1993 with just 12 events. Since then, it has grown bigger every year. The festival invites food and wine experts from all over the world. These guests include famous chefs, winemakers, growers, and food writers.

A well-known food critic named Matt Preston used to be the creative director for the festival. The 2009 festival was his last time in that role. In 2020, most of the festival events were put on hold. Some parts of it even happened online instead.

Festival in 2011

The 19th Melbourne Food and Wine Festival was a huge event. More than 350,000 people attended over 250 events. It lasted for 11 days.

The festival started with a special event called the "World's Longest Lunches." About 4,500 people joined 26 of these lunches all across Victoria at the same time. At the Melbourne lunch, people ate lots of broad beans, cherry tomatoes, and veal.

The festival ended with a giant cooking class. More than 2,600 people joined 100 chefs and wine tasters. Many famous people from around the world came to the 2011 festival. These included Nigella Lawson from Great Britain and Elena Arzak from Spain. Australian stars like Stephanie Alexander and Maggie Beer also attended.

Melbourne hosts these food and wine festivals every year. They help bring tourists to the city. They also show how many different kinds of food Melbourne has.

Festival in 2010

In 2010, the festival had a large cooking class called the "Langham Melbourne Masterclass." Famous chefs like David Chang and Massimo Bottura taught at this event. A well-known winemaker, Gaia Gaja, also took part.

The festival's main event was the "World's Longest Lunch." This year, it celebrated Melbourne's Chinese history. It also brought back the Heat Beads Hawkers' Market to Queen Victoria Market. At the same time, the town of Marysville hosted one of 19 regional "World's Longest Lunches." This was one year after the terrible Black Saturday bushfires. This event was part of over 70 regional events.

The festival also created a special garden in Melbourne's City Square. It was called the 'Metlink Edible Garden' and grew food right in the city.

Festival in 2009

In 2009, the festival welcomed some of the world's best chefs. These included Heston Blumenthal from The Fat Duck and Thomas Keller from The French Laundry. Rene Redzepi from Noma restaurant also attended. Famous winemakers like Michel Chapoutier were there too.

Awards and Recognition

The Melbourne Food and Wine Festival has won many awards. In Australia, it won the 2010 RACV Victorian Tourism Awards for "Major Festivals and Events." It was even added to their Hall of Fame. It also won the Melbourne Airport Victorian Tourism Awards in 2008 and 2009. In 2008, it won a Melbourne Award for its "Contribution to Profile."

Internationally, the festival has also been recognized. It won a Gold award at the 2008 International Festival and Events Awards. This was for having the 'Best Festival Program.'