After its triumphant return to Dunorlan Park last year following the Covid crisis, foodie-focused Pub in the Park is back in Tunbridge Wells this July – and as you’d expect the bill is a mouth-watering one!
If you’re not familiar with it, then in brief Pub in the Park is a smorgasbord of good grooves and fantastic food supported by some of the country’s top chefs and musicians. And it’s one of the biggest events to happen in the South East.
In addition to pop-ups run by some of Tom Kerridge’s famous friends – including Michelin-starred chef Atul Kochhar, who is due to open his Riwaz restaurant on The Pantiles later this year – there are gigs to enjoy, tastings and food demos aplenty, and stalls to browse selling all manner of tasty food and drink.
This year the Tunbridge Wells event is sixth on the Pub in the Park schedule coming straight after events in Marlow, Wimbledon, Warwick, Bath and Dulwich and just before others happening in St Albans, Chiswick and Brighton.
Serving up a feast of treats in Tunbridge Wells will be the likes of Sankey’s, The Tanner Brothers from The Kentish Hare and Will Devlin from The Small Holding in Kilndown.
Sunday Brunch’s Simon Rimmer will compère the three-day extravaganza, which kicks off on Friday night (July 8) with live musical entertainment from DJs Faithless and Kitchen Disco Queen Sophie Ellis Bextor.
Over the weekend Pub in the Park-goers can also expect to hear The Feeling, Supergrass and Professor Green perform.
Food-wise there will be the usual uniquely created tapas sized signature dishes on offer to buy from a variety of stalls, as well as an opportunity to sample lots of locally-produced and sourced specialist products.
A number of pubs and restaurants have also been confirmed. They include Joshua Moroney and Mursal Saiq’s British Afghan fusion restaurant Cue Point, which is new to Tunbridge Wells.
Commenting on being part of such a wonderful event from the beginning, James Tanner of Bidborough’s The Kentish Hare said: “What a beautiful and fantastic event Pub in the Park is! There’s a great festival feeling about it and the bands are always amazing.”
The event’s founder, Tom Kerridge, added: “We’re so excited to be bringing some seriously top-notch chefs and their incredible pubs and restaurants to the towns we love this year.
“Food is at the very heart of what we do. I’ve had a sneak peek at the menus and I’ve definitely got my eye on a few of the dishes – we can’t wait for you to try them.”
When Pub in the Park first came to Tunbridge Wells in 2018 it attracted around 17,000 visitors. Over the last two years the event has suffered from scaled-down versions due to the pandemic, but this year it’s business as usual!
Tickets for the 2022 Pub in the Park are on sale now from:
