Eat & drink at Hay Festival
From morning coffee to an afternoon pint, from pastries to pizza and cakes to curries, we’ve got you covered. We bring you flavours from Wales and around the world to fuel your day at Hay.
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Food for thought
The Festival Canteen offers an abundance of delicious street food to keep you energised. Our focus is on sustainable catering, with plenty of plant-based and gluten-free options. There are child-friendly portions and prices at all Festival food stands.
Thirst quenchers
For a pint of real ale, a glass of wine, Prosecco, or a jug of Pimm’s to enjoy in the sunshine, head to the Festival Bar with its outdoor decked area to soak up some of the Festival atmosphere while you enjoy a drink. There are plenty of soft drink options too.
Time for a brew
Our coffee shops across the site serve delicious Fairtrade coffees and teas as well as cold drinks and a delectable array of cakes, pastries, sandwiches, wraps and salads. You can find them in the main entrance, the Family Garden, the Canteen and on the boardwalk next to the Bookshop.
In a new initiative this year, all our whole milk is being delivered to the site in reusable churns directly from a local farmer, supporting our aim to source local ingredients while further reducing our use of single-use plastic.
Chapter House Café
More than just a pause for a hot drink, Chapter House Café is an invitation to relax, unwind and engage in conversation with fellow festival-goers. Whether you’re seeking a quiet corner to lose yourself in a novel or a lively spot to share stories with friends, you’ll find a warm welcome here.
Reusable Cup System
Our reusable cups and glasses for hot and cold drinks are back this year, boosting our sustainability. We charge a £1 reusable cup fee for your first drink anywhere on the Festival site. Use and reuse your cup, wash it throughout the day at our handy wash stations, then drop it in the return bins as you leave the site. You’re ver y welcome to bring your own reusable cup to the Festival.
Oakchurch Farm Shop
Family owned and run for over 50 years, Oakchurch Farm Shop is a culinary showcase for the county and is often referred to by locals as the ‘Harrods of Herefordshire’. You can experience a taste of Oakchurch on the Festival site as they exhibit some of the best local food and drink producers from their independent suppliers, as well as some holiday essentials. Come along to sample award-winning products and meet and talk to the producers.
oakchurch.netShepherds Ice Cream
Irresistible ice creams, sublime sorbets and divine dairy-free desserts. Shepherds have been making artisan ice cream since 1987, using their unique recipe based on sheep’s milk and plant-based milks. Visit their stall on site, drop in to Shepherds Parlour when you’re in town, or check out the Ice Cream Shop in Abergavenny. Don’t be a lost sheep. Join the flock.
shepherdsicecream.co.uk
Delicious street food from...
Bao Selecta
Bao Selecta from Cardiff Market is an independent Taiwanese-themed gem serving up unique, passion-packed bao buns and rice bowls with fresh cooking, seasonal ingredients and bold flavours. It’s no wonder they’re British Street Food Award winners. Tasty, quirky and one of a kind – try the best-selling Crispy ‘Beef’ Bao for pure bliss!
Hidden Pizza
Hidden Pizza brings their award-winning wood-fired sourdough pizzas to Hay Festival. Crafted with Wildfarmed’s carbon-negative flour, Somerset mozzarella, free-range cured meats and organic vegetables, their pizzas are as ethical as they are delicious. Pizza for the planet!
Kitchen Garden Pizza
Kitchen Garden Pizza uses the freshest garden and foraged produce to make their wood-fired pizzas, from wild garlic in the spring to fennel in the summer, and always topped with fresh rocket. Their pizzas are a local expression of an Italian classic, and they invite you to come and dig in. Kitchen Garden Pizza is also running pizza workshops for adults and children, in which imaginations and creativity will be fed along with bellies.
La Petite Bouffe
La Petite Bouffe serves yummy sweet crêpes and savoury galettes made with a choice of plain or gluten-free buckwheat flour, and packed with organic fillings sourced locally – try the Cenarth Brie cheese in their galettes. Open for breakfast, lunch, tea-time and dinner, they also serve filter coffee and speciality teas.
Lola’s Fish & Chips
Lola’s is all about the fish, bringing a little bit of the coast to the fields. Expect elevated fish dishes, farm shop Cumberland sausage and their legendary minted mushy peas.
Mac Daddies Gourmet Mac and Cheese
Offering the most amazing baked mac with incredible toppings like slow cooked meats, truffle and gold, Mac Daddies cater for all dietary requirements and only use the finest local ingredients to create sensational dishes that make your taste buds tingle with delight. They can’t wait to serve their cheesy goodness to everyone.
Roly Poly Eats
Roly Poly Eats serves delicious, authentic Greek-inspired food, offering mouthwatering dishes like gyros, souvlaki and fresh Mediterranean salads. Known for their flavourful ingredients and generous portions, they’ve had rave reviews about the perfectly seasoned meats, homemade sauces and warm pita bread, making them a top pick for Greek street food.
Taste Tibet
Taste Tibet is a restaurant and food stall with an award-winning cookbook. Owners Yeshi and Julie, who met in the foothills of the Himalayas, have featured on C4’s Sunday Brunch and BBC1’s Saturday Kitchen. Come for Yeshi’s legendary momo dumplings and a wide range of Himalayan curries, with plenty of vegan and gluten-free offerings.
The Beefy Boys
These four backyard cooks are now an award-winning restaurant chain with locations in Hereford, Shrewsbury, Cheltenham and now Bath. Everything is cooked fresh to order using the highest quality ingredients and Herefordshire beef. They won Burger and Chef of the Year in 2023, came fourth in the 2024 World Food Championships and launched a bestselling cookbook.
The Big Cheese Toastie
The Big Cheese Toastie serves up mouthwatering gourmet cheese toasties on thick sliced farmhouse bread, crisp skin-on fries and freshly squeezed orange juice. With 50% veggie and vegan options, plus the meaty classics, they’ve got something delicious for everyone.
The Fritter Shack
The Fritter Shack is a vegetarian food company from Wales with lots to offer, from moussaka and veggie burgers to fresh, colourful salads. Their main meal, ‘The Works’, is coconut dal and crispy vegetable fritters with grape ruby slaw, carrot and orange with pomegranate salad and Mediterranean garden green salad, all with chilli jam.
Wrap It
Wrap It’s unique vegetarian/vegan menu is sure to satisfy everyone’s taste buds. Their most popular wrap is ‘The Palestinian’, a family falafel recipe they’ve been making for over 100 years. You may have tried many a falafel – and some may have been good – but theirs is beyond good. The best falafel you will ever taste.
Yellow Turban Thali
Bristol-based Yellow Turban Thali have been providing quality home-made food for 10 years. Spices are roasted and expertly mixed for an authentic flavour. A Korean twist of homemade kimchi with local foraged wild garlic accompanies their hot snacks. Try the coconut chai, mango lassis, home-made bhajis, or the Thali Plate to sample all their curries with chutneys and pickles.