Colmore Food Festival 2025
Colmore BID, one of the UK’s leading Business Improvement Districts, has announced the dates for its renowned Colmore Food Festival for 2025. On Friday 4 and Saturday 5 July 2025, the much-loved Festival is back in Victoria Square for it’s biggest edition yet!
The award-winning event will provide guests with an appetising and affordable selection of mouth-watering taster dishes from the traders’ latest menus. The must-visit festival showcases some of the best food and drink offerings from across the Colmore Business District and attracts over 30,000 visitors each year.
Visitors will be spoilt for choice with the stalls made up of local restaurants, coffee shops, bars and hotels offering a selection of meat, vegetarian, and vegan options, as well as a selection of wines, beers, cocktails, and soft drinks. As always, organisers are placing price caps on food and drinks, creating an affordable but unforgettable experience.
Trader Applications
Applications for Colmore Business District based venues only are now open by emailing foodfestival@colmorebid.co.uk. For external and non-District based trader application updates, the latest news will be released shortly.
2024 Lineup
Media
Hear coverage of Colmore Food Festival 2024 all this week on Hits Radio Birmingham!
Food
Drinks
2024 Entertainment
We have worked in partnership with Albert Schloss and Luxury Live Music to develop the Colmore Food Festival 2024 entertainment programme.
This year’s schedule is going to be even bigger and better than ever, with an eclectic line up showcasing everything from acoustic artists to Bhangra troupes and Caribbean style steel pans players.
Over the course of the two-day festival, we’ll see some of the best food in the city showcased by different vendors come together in a celebration of diversity, and all to a fantastic playlist put together by our local team of talent.
Day One: Friday, September 13th
- 11:00 AM – 11:45 AM: Keep Off The Brass
Comprising of some of the finest musos in the region, Keep Off The Brass is an exciting new mix of 3-piece brass band and live DJ – totally unique and exclusive to the city. Playing a live fusion of funk, soul, RnB and house with a raw brass sound combined with high energy beats, they play it all – an eclectic array of tunes perfect for a packed dance floor and is guaranteed to win over a crowd instantly.
- 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM: Sean Reeves
Sean is a hugely talented acoustic guitarist and singer with an enviable repertoire ranging from The Beatles to Harry Styles. Sean will take song requests and get your guests thoroughly involved in creating their own set list for the day.
- 1:00 PM – 1:45 PM: Steel Pans
Steel pans bring the sound of Caribbean sunshine! The trio, dressed in brightly coloured Jamaican shirts and complete with an optional decorative palm tree, will have guests dreaming of the Antigua sunsets with their with their melodic renditions of chart hits, and pop classics.
- 2:00 PM – 2:15 PM: Bhangra and Dhol
A show bursting with colour and energy! Join the group of professional, stylish and charismatic Bhangra dancers alongside Dohl drummers who will light up the event. With brightly coloured costumes and high energy performances, this will give guests a true taste of Bollywood.
- 2:30 PM – 3:15 PM: Dino Baptiste
Dino is a highly energetic pianist, vocalist & entertainer with strong links to Blues, Boogie Woogie & Rock & Roll as well as mainstream classics & current cover songs. His influences revolve around 3 idols since a teenager – Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis & Ray Charles.
- 3:30 PM – 3:45 PM: Bhangra and Dhol
A second chance to enjoy this vibrant cultural showcase.
- 4:00 PM – 4:45 PM: Simon Jnr
The charismatic Simon Jnr takes the stage for a lively set.
- 5:00 PM – 5:45 PM: Ellie Jones
Guitarist and singer Ellie brings a soulful style and impressive, eclectic set list. From fronting her own band, to strumming out chilled Sade tunes, Ellie is hugely talented and loved by all audiences.
- 6:00 PM – 6:45 PM: Alberts Schloss
An engaging band sure to get the evening crowd going.
- 7:15 PM – 8:00 PM: Alberts Schloss
Closing the night with another dynamic set.
Day Two: Saturday, September 14th
- 11:00 AM – 11:45 AM: Keep Off The Brass
The weekend continues with another lively brass performance.
- 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM: Sam Marks
A hugely talented pianist and singer there pretty much isn’t a song that Sam doesn’t know! With a huge repertoire ranging from Elton John to Eminem, Sam is an expert at working up an audience, taking requests and giving every audience member a fantastic time ensuring the dancefloor is full until the bitter end!
- 1:00 PM – 1:45 PM: Steel Pans
More steel pan sounds to keep the vibes upbeat and festive.
- 2:00 PM – 2:45 PM: The Theatre Workshop
Established in 2003, The Theatre Workshop has a reputation of excellence and is recognised as one of the leading and most successful performing arts schools in the UK. Showcasing their fabulous choir the organisation offers training in acting, singing and dance to young people aged 6-24yrs and will take to the stage on Saturday to bring you a mix of classic and modern show tunes.
- 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM: Kids Hour
Fun and interactive activities to keep the little ones entertained.
- 4:15 PM – 4:30 PM: Bhangra and Dhol
Once again, the lively and colourful Bhangra dancers return.
- 5:00 PM – 5:45 PM: Dino Baptiste
Get ready for more infectious boogie-woogie beats.
- 6:00 PM – 6:45 PM: Alberts Schloss
The evening kicks off with another fantastic performance from Alberts Schloss’ top entertainers.
- 7:15 PM – 8:00 PM: Alberts Schloss
Wrapping up the festival with a final set full of energy and good vibes.
Kids Entertainment
Sustainability
The Colmore Food Festival is proud to promote a range of sustainable practices. We are committed to a range of operational practices to ensure our event has a minimal impact on the environment, and maximum impact on the local community.
We are proud to:
- Have NO single use plastics on site
- Only use 100% reusable packaging
- Carefully segment our waste in into sorting stations (general waste, mixed recycling, food recycling, glass recycling and coffee recycling) working in close partnership with our waste supplier FirstMile.
- Control portion measures to minimise food waste.
- Enforce price caps on all items to ensure affordability for all guests.
- Provide free drinking water from any trader.
- Have a range of bike storage facilities available nearby to the Festival site.
- Encourage visitors to utilise public transport in their Festival journey.
- Use electricity as our main energy source, abiding by Birmingham City Council’s ‘Clean Air Zone’ policies.
More information
For events enquiries, please email foodfestival@colmorebid.co.uk.
For media and communications enquiries, please email heather.woodhouse@colmorebid.co.uk.
