The African Australian organisation is fundraising for an African Arts Centre in Canberra. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Food lovers, rejoice! Our favourite foodie festival is back!
The National Multicultural Festival is a three-day event featuring cultural performances, live music, comedy, dance, workshops, cooking demonstrations, and more. But if you’re anything like me, you’re going for the FOOD.
There is more than just meat on a stick to enjoy at the festival (although I will 100% be searching out any and all variations on kebab/satay/BBQ skewers). The festival is a great opportunity to taste your way through a range of cuisines, especially dishes you may not have the chance to eat regularly.
Region headed into the festival as stalls were setting up on Friday to get an advance sample of what you can expect to eat at this year’s festival.
The gateway to Glebe Park, which holds many of the stalls this year. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Many community organisations have set up stalls to fundraise for various activities.
Shanti Devi is the treasurer of Dudjom Krodikali Association, which will be selling Bhutanese-style dumplings this weekend on City Walk.
“Dumplings are made in many countries, but Bhutanese dumplings are unique. I like the vegetable dumpling, it’s made with cabbage, onion, garlic and cheese,” Shanti told Region.
“We’re a Buddhist organisation, and we meet every week, so we’re here raising money for a space of our own.”
Further towards Canberra Theatre, the Canberra Juventus Football Club is raising money for its activities.
The club was founded in 1953 but has only recently returned to the Canberra football scene, with its men’s team competing in the top ACT league and two women’s teams competing in Division 1 and reserves. They’ve also recently launched a juniors program.
Director Mac Macor told Region this is their second year at the festival.
“We learned a lot of lessons last year. We didn’t know how many sausages we’d need! So it should be a bit smoother this year. We’re selling Italian sausage, arancini balls, cannoli and sweets, as well as Italian beer and wine, and cocktails like Aperol spritz.”
The festival has continued its move toward Glebe Park, with additional food, beverage, and cultural stalls, as well as three stages in the park. This aims to reduce congestion along City Walk and also avoids ongoing construction around London Circuit.
The south end of Glebe Park offers a lovely setting for the Cypher Brewing Co beer garden. They’ve teamed up with Australian Native Bush Co to make a native Iced Tea and Energy Drink, and they’ve also got a menu of native foods, including emu sausages and kangaroo skewers. This end of the festival also features a stage, with plenty of relaxed seating areas under the shade of the trees.
Also in Glebe Park is the Canberra branch of the African Australian Organisation, which is fundraising for an African Arts Centre.
“We’ve got lots of West African dishes like jollof rice and fried plantain, which is like a banana. We will have a special cassava leaf stew on Saturday, which we serve with white rice,” said volunteer Esther Koker.
“We also have an African doughnut called puff puff, which we make in a special way.
To plan ahead, this year’s website features an interactive map so you can see in advance where each stall is located and which days they will be attending (some stalls do not operate for all three days of the festival). The website also includes a program for each of the six festival stages, as well as information on road closures, public transport, and parking.
The National Multicultural Festival will run from 5 pm, Friday, 6 February, until late; from 10 am until late on Saturday, 7 February; and from 10 am until 5 pm on Sunday, 8 February. Find out more at Multicultural Festival.
