Thousands turned out to celebrate the biggest and best ever Croydon Food & Music Festival on Sunday, 23rd June 2019 – and everyone agrees it was a big success.

A record 13,000 people visited the 8th annual event to enjoy alfresco dining on international cuisine served by over 90 street food and drinks stalls along the borough’s famous Restaurant Quarter in South End.

They danced along to top class live sets from local bands and musicians on two stages, and tasted food and cocktails prepared by local chefs and mixologists on the Mobile Kitchen Theatre stage, which made a popular return this year.There were also drinks stalls serving cocktails, prosecco and soft drinks, as well as street entertainment, stilt walkers and face painters for the children.

South Croydon resident Emma Miller, who was there with family and friends, summed up the mood: “There was a brilliant atmosphere at the Festival this year – a really good vibe, with so much more to do. I love that it brings the whole community together – it’s such a great advert for Croydon.”

After sampling freshly made vegan pasta on the Mobile Cookery Theatre stage, the new Mayor of Croydon, Councillor Humayun Kabir (pictured above), said: “The food festival is a great event for Croydon that brings people of all ages and cultures together to enjoy a great family day out of fantastic food and music. I congratulate everyone involved for putting on another successful event for the borough.”

Organised by South Croydon Business Association, this year’s Festival featured top bands, such as Junkyard Choir below, on the Main Stage hosted by local venue Hoodoos and sponsored by London Borough of Croydon. The Community Stage, sponsored by Regent Land Developments played host to fantastic local talent including musicians and choirs.

South Croydon Business Association Chairman & owner of Yumn Restaurant, Waseem Sherwani thanked all the organisers, traders, musicians, and visitors.

He paid particular tribute to the 2019 Festival Sponsors who made the event possible: London Borough of Croydon; the Ward Councillors of Fairfield, Sanderstead, Selsdon and South Croydon; Bagatti’s Restaurant; Bryden Johnson; Queen’s Square and Regent Land Developments.

QUOTES – WHAT THEY SAID:

SPONSORS:

QUEEN’S SQUARE
“The Croydon Food and Music Festival was a huge success, and aside from being immense fun, the aromas, taste and sound sensations really highlight the amazing cultural platform that Croydon offers. R&F Properties are fully immersed in designing Queen’s Square to deliver a large mixed use scheme that will provide a new public square, path ways, and food and retail offerings right in the centre of Croydon. We look forward to building a vibrant destination for people to live, work and enjoy and are proud to continue our integration into this rich community. We welcome all visitors to our marketing suite at 23-25 High Street, Croydon, to find out more about our plans, and the progress we are making.”
Michael Purefoy, Sales and Marketing Director, R&F Group UK

REGENT LAND
“Regent land are delighted to sponsor such a popular annual event, as a Croydon company we are proud to be part of the Croydon community and place a lot of value on our association with supporting such inclusive occasions, highlighting further what a great place Croydon is for all”
Patrick Maher, Director, Regent Land and Development

LONDON BOROUGH OF CROYDON
“The food festival is a great event for Croydon that brings people from all ages and cultures together to enjoy a great family day out of fantastic food and great music. I congratulate everyone involved, including organisers South Croydon Business Association, for putting on another successful event for the borough.”
Councillor Humayun Kabir, Mayor of Croydon.

SOUTH CROYDON BUSINESS ASSOCIATION
“We’ve put on one of the biggest food festivals Croydon has ever seen this year. We brought back cookery demonstrations on the Mobile Cookery Stage, we added more food stalls, more music and more bands, and the feedback has been terrific – everyone seemed to love it. Best of all, there was a really fantastic feeling that the festival brought the whole community together to bond and celebrate Croydon.”
Peter Bagatti, Deputy Chair of SCBA & owner of Bagatti’s Restaurant.

WARD COUNCILLORS
“The Croydon Food & Music Festival is a great event that brings the entire community together to enjoy good food and music in a peaceful and happy family atmosphere. We are proud to sponsor the 2019 event – well done to everyone involved in making it happen”
Councillor Jason Perry, Ward Councillor for South Croydon.