Portsmouth is full of foodies. The surrounding area is also full of artisan food and drink producers, doing weird and wonderful things with all manner of ingredients to create some of the most interesting tastes and fusions around.
Plus, being a port city, we have influences from all over the world, making Portsmouth a very interesting place to go out to eat and drink.
The many food and drink festivals that run in Portsmouth is evidence of that, and it’s a really eclectic mix. Whatever your tastes you will find something that piques your interest. Whether it’s a big festival showcasing food and drink from all over the world, or a niche festival focussing on chilli and gin – you’ll find it in Pompey.
The Best Festivals to Attend
This isn’t a list of every food and drink festival in Portsmouth, but it is a curated list of the biggest, best, and most interesting.
Southsea Food Festival
Around 65,000 people attend the Southsea Food Festival each year, so safe to say it is the biggest food and drink festival in Portsmouth.
It’s a very well known local event that has been running since 2008, taking place over 2 days in the heart of the town with pop up outlets lining the streets which are closed to traffic (those that aren’t already pedestrianised). The focus is on local businesses and local produce, so everything you can buy is likely to have been produced within a few miles of town.
It’s well supported by all the high street stores and eateries too, and with it being held in July, the weather tends to be good. Some people pop over for lunch and a quick drink, others spend the whole day in the area grazing and drinking, and generally enjoying themselves.
Lots of outdoor seating is supplied, as well as live music throughout both days, family friendly entertainment, and there is even a kitchen stage where chefs prepare delicious food in front of an audience.
It’s a festival that welcomes food and drink of all kinds, so you will find everything from Thai, Greek, veggie and vegan options, burgers, Japanese food, Korean food, churros, ice cream, even pet food! Every corner of the globe is represented here.
Portsmouth Vegan Festival
Not for everyone perhaps, but for the ever growing Vegan community, the Portsmouth Vegan Festival at the Mountbatten centre is the best (and potentially the only) food and drink festival available.
It’s actually a festival about living an ethical, animal friendly, and eco lifestyle, but food and drink is a huge part of it. You will find:
- Juice and smoothie stalls
- World food caterers
- Cakes
- Healthy treats
- Dairy and meat alternatives
- Cooking lessons, recipe ideas, and nutritional advice
- Products you can’t find in the supermarkets
And lots of free samples too, which everybody likes.
As well as all the amazing food and drink, there are vegan clothes stands, cleaning products, skin care and beauty, henna tattoo stations, all sorts of interesting stuff, and all of it vegan. You don’t need to be a vegan to attend of course, anyone who enjoys trying new foods will love it.
Gin and Rum Festival
This is actually a touring festival, but it has been coming to Portsmouth since it began back in 2018, so it certainly feels like a staple event on the calendar each year.
The Gin and Rum Festival is a good old fashioned summer party festival, taking place in September each year at Portsmouth Cathedral. It’s full of themed gin and rum bars, over 120 different tipples to choose from produced by distillers handpicked by the event organisers. You don’t have to drink gin or rum, other drinks will be available too, and there are plenty of other reasons to attend.
There are some great food outlets for a start, the chance to meet the makers and ask questions or listen to talks about the distilling process, plus a resident DJ playing tunes throughout the day to keep the atmosphere up as well as an acoustic band to keep things interesting.
Chilli and Gin Festival
Proudly marketed as the only Chilli and Gin festival in the country, this annual event takes place at the end of June at Fort Purbrook. It’s a family run business focussing on local talent and community, and you won’t find anything else like it – it’s unique to Portsmouth.
To be fair, it’s not that hard to be the only festival of your kind when you run a festival about Chilli and Gin, but still, it’s a popular annual event.
The festival was founded in 2019 ready for a 2020 start, but Covid forced them to postpone twice, so the inaugural festival took place in 2022, and it’s been going strong every year since. The Chilli and Gin festival is a celebration of bold flavours, bringing people together through spice, spirit, and a shared local passion.
Much of the food and drink sold is locally sourced, and there is lots of entertainment in the way of music, cocktail making workshops, chilli eating competitions and hot wing eating competitions, activities like axe throwing, a kids bouncy castle area, and even world record attempts.
The concept might not be immediately obvious but the experience is a great laugh.
Oktoberfest
Not exactly unique to Portsmouth (Oktoberfest is a massive international brand and they pop up everywhere), but nevertheless it is great fun, and Portsmouth has its own version.
It usually takes place at the beginning of November, but the specific dates move around slightly from year to year.
Oktoberfest is a beer and folk festival originating in Germany, but it has become popular around the world. Around 6 million people travel to the real thing in Germany, but the Portsmouth version is held in Guildhall and around Guildhall Square. It might not attract millions, but it’s been established since 2016 and was the South Coats first ever Oktoberfest, so it’s always busy.
It has everything you would expect from Oktoberfest: steins of beer, oompa bands, German sausages, pretzels, and lots of girls wearing dirndls and blokes in lederhosen. Loads of fun.