Celebrity chefs to serve up a feast at Nelson Food & Drink Festival

The countdown is on for one of east Lancashire's most popular events as the Nelson Food & Drink Festival returns on Saturday September 12, bringing together celebrity chefs, local producers, live entertainment and family fun for a fantastic day out.

The free-to-attend festival will take place from 11am until 5pm in Nelson town centre, offering visitors the chance to browse a wide range of food, drink and craft stalls, enjoy live cooking demonstrations, soak up live entertainment and experience a packed programme of activities for all ages.

Back by popular demand is celebrity chef and social media sensation Zaynah Din, whose appearance at last year's festival proved a huge hit with visitors. With more than 10.2m likes on TikTok and a social media following of more than 850,000, Zaynah has become one of the UK's best-loved food creators.

The bestselling author, recipe developer and content creator behind @ZaynahsBakes is renowned for her vibrant Asian fusion recipes and approachable cooking style, inspiring thousands of home cooks to recreate authentic Pakistani dishes with confidence. Her debut Ramadan cookbook, Desified, became a bestseller and she continues to champion bold flavours and accessible everyday cooking.

Festival-goers will be able to watch Zaynah prepare Aloo and Cheese Stuffed Naan, Chilli Garlic Chicken, an Indo-Chinese fusion stir fry, and Channa Masala during her live demonstrations.

Joining Zaynah at this year's festival is celebrity chef Naem Rafiq, founder and pitmaster of the acclaimed PitBoyz Smokehouse in Brierfield.

With more than 20 years of professional culinary experience, Naem has worked in some of the UK's leading restaurants and as a private chef for celebrities, influencers and high-profile clients. His passion for authentic low-and-slow barbecue, premium ingredients and bold flavours has helped establish PitBoyz Smokehouse as one of Lancashire's standout BBQ destinations, with exciting plans now underway to open his first full-service restaurant in Nelson town centre.

Visitors will be able to watch Naem showcase his expertise with a live smoked brisket demonstration while sharing the techniques and passion behind authentic barbecue cooking.

Naem Rafiq said: "I can't wait for the Nelson Food & Drink Festival. I will be giving an insight into the new, upcoming PitBoyz Smokehouse that's coming to Nelson, and I will be doing a live smoke brisket session. I look forward to seeing everyone there."

Councillor Sughra Bibi, events chair at Nelson Town Council, said: "The Nelson Food & Drink Festival is one of the highlights of our events calendar and we're absolutely delighted to welcome everyone back this September.

“We see a fantastic turnout every year and it's wonderful to see so many people enjoying everything the festival has to offer. With celebrity chefs, incredible local food and drink, entertainment throughout the day and plenty of family-friendly activities, there's something for everyone. We can't wait to see you all down here for another incredible festival."

The 2026 Nelson Food & Drink Festival is proudly sponsored by Nelson-based Sugden Processing Equipment, world leaders in the design and manufacture of Hotplate Lines and VanderPol waffle equipment.

A spokesperson for Sugden Processing Equipment said: "We're delighted to be sponsoring the Nelson Food & Drink Festival once again. Last year's event was so much fun, and it was brilliant to see so many people coming together to celebrate great food, local businesses and the community. We can't wait to do it all over again and are proud to continue supporting such a successful event."

With an exciting programme of celebrity chefs, delicious food, local traders and entertainment, this year's Nelson Food & Drink Festival promises to be another memorable occasion.

To keep up to date with the festival, visit www.nelsonfoodfestival.co.uk