A new tourism campaign has been launched to promote the unique food and drink available to people in Leicester and Leicestershire and those who visit us here. 'Taste the Place', launched by Visit Leicester, focuses on themes including ‘A Taste of England’, ‘The World on a Plate’, ‘Food for Thought’, and ‘The Home of Veganism’.

Taste the Place aims to showcase the best, local independent producers, restaurants, cafes, delis, farm shops, pubs, food festivals and more to highlight the breadth of food and drink on offer here. This will provide visitors with a wide choice of places where they can eat, drink, buy and see food and drink in production, and experience the very best through a range of events.

According to Visit Leicester, the campaign will feature a number of exciting elements, including an event calendar, ‘Taste Adventures in Leicester and Leicestershire’, with itineraries, trails and interactive maps promoting the best independents in an area, and 'Pub Walks for Foodies' - curated one-hour walks from some of the best independent pubs.

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There will also be 'Pick Up and Picnic', including suggestions of where to buy locally-sourced food in farm shops, markets and delis, and suggestions of the best local picnic spots in which to eat it, as well as a new city restaurant trail and even a 'Leicester Curry Diploma' to highlight key dishes that diners are likely to encounter on a menu in Leicester.

Taste the Place focuses on four key themes, including A Taste of England which explores traditional produce made or consumed in Leicestershire, including Melton Mowbray pork pies, Stilton and Red Leicester cheeses, along with ales and ciders that are made in the area.

It also involves promoting traditional pubs, coaching inns and venues where afternoon tea (said to have been invented at Belvoir Castle in the mid-1840s) can be enjoyed. It will promote activities related to the theme including pie making workshops, brewery tours as well as events such as East Midlands Food Festival, Pie Fest, the Artisan Cheese Fair, real ale festivals and more.

The World on a Plate highlights the world food offer, and the communities and individuals that have helped to develop this. The multi-cultural food offer reflects the local South Asian, Turkish, African, Jamaican, Indonesian, Czech, Italian and Portuguese communities. Leicester is a former Curry Capital of Britain and also second on the list of world cities with the most Indian restaurants per capita outside of India.

Food for Thought explores how climate change can also be fought from the kitchen. It will look at environmentally sustainable food consumption that reduces food miles, supports sustainable agri-farming and promotes a ‘farm-to-fork’ approach. The campaign will highlight producers with retail outlets, delis, farm shops and markets where locally-produced, seasonal products can be purchased as well as businesses that use a local supply chain.

The Home of Veganism highlights the fact that veganism was first invented in Leicester by Donald Watson in the 1940s, a fact celebrated by the newly-opened Donald Watson Vegan Bar in Granby Street in the city. The Vegan Society was also founded in Leicester and the city is consistently in the top 10 of UK vegan cities. This theme will celebrate the wide range of vegan restaurants, bars, cafes and dessert parlours in Leicester as well as the origins of veganism in the city.

Melton Mowbray is well known for its pork pies
Melton Mowbray is well known for its pork pies

Taste the Place was launched on the first day of English Tourism Week (March 17-26) and Alicia Kearns, MP for Rutland and Melton, spoke at the event. She said: “It was a real privilege to be invited to speak at Melton Stockyard for the Taste the Place campaign launch, a brilliant initiative to showcase the very best food and produce from our county.

“We are very lucky to have so many wonderful producers locally, and this is a really exciting opportunity to highlight what we have on offer and strengthen Melton’s position as the ‘Rural Capital of Food’.”

Attendees also heard from representatives from a number of local food and drink businesses, including March House Farm, Hanwell Wine Estate and Donald Watson's Vegan Bar -which opened recently in Leicester city centre. All expressed their enthusiasm for playing a role in making Leicester and Leicestershire a food and drink destination.

Councillor Pam Posnett, Leicestershire County Council cabinet member for rural affairs, said: “There is a wealth of world-leading food and drink on offer across the city and county. Leicestershire is well known as the ‘Rural Capital of Food’ and is home to the world-renowned Melton Mowbray pork pies, Stilton cheese and Sparkenhoe Red Leicester.

Donald Watson's Vegan Bar, Granby Street, Leicester.
Donald Watson's Vegan Bar

"With top-notch vegan and world cuisines available across the county, as well as organic fruit soft drinks, wines and award-winning craft ales, there’s a lot to discover. This campaign is a great way of encouraging residents and visitors to make the most of the mouth-watering food and drink on our doorstep.”

Councillor Piara Singh Clair MBE, Deputy City Mayor at Leicester City Council, who has responsibility for culture and leisure, said: “Our goal is to raise awareness amongst local people of the fabulous food and drink offer across the city and county and to attract people from outside the area to visit, stay and enjoy the fantastic food and drink on offer in the region.

“Taste the Place features a wide selection of the unique food and drink producers, experiences and outlets that Leicester and Leicestershire have to offer.”

To find out more about the Taste the Place campaign and for bookable visits, activities and experiences, visit www.visitleicester.info/taste-the-place

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