Looe’s Food and Drink Festival made a welcome return to the East Looe Buller Quay this September.

After a soft relaunch last year by Looe Town Council, this year’s festival was promised to be bigger and better than ever before with local boy made good, Chef Ben Palmer from The Sardine Factory, at the helm as Festival Chef Director.

The chef, born and bred in Looe, returned to his home town after a meteoric rise and is currently heading up two culinary ventures there.

At the heart of each is a love of local Cornish produce, and a complete passion to push Looe’s culinary presence to new heady heights and add it to the name of Cornish foodie capitals.

Sharing in that passion this year is experienced festival supporter Sharps Brewing Co who stepped in as main sponsor.

Ben Palmer said: “Putting something on like this with experienced festival goers like Sharps, and getting backing and sponsorship from them, it says a lot really.

“Number one though is inviting people to the area that have never been here before, and the chefs for the first time here, I want them to see how beautiful Looe is and what we have on offer.”

The festival weekend began with a Grain vs Grape head-to-head at The Sardine Factory; a tastebud extravaganza before the main serving of the festival itself.

Six plates of exquisite Michelin Bib Gourmand awarded food matched with grain brews chosen by Sharps Brewing Co’s Ed Hughes pitted against grape varieties from Ffion Evans at Molson Goor.

The grape shone through as the ultimate winner with the 75 guests, with apple making a surprise appearance alongside the Lemon Meringue ice cream in the form of a crisp, cold cider.

On the Sunday, an awe-inspiring line up of 12 South West chefs took to the main stage at the festival marquee on the Buller Quay, each with their take on dishes representing the best of local produce from the land and sea.

Food and drink stalls stretching the length of the fishing quay offered local fare, some with a twist, from Cornish tea, and Cornish gouda, to rolled ice cream - ice cream curls with crushed flavours scraped off an icy surface into crisp rolls served in a cup, and Cruffins (a Looe novelty pastry mixing croissant and muffin).

The Chef demos in the main marquee however were the undoubtable draw of the day, with all seats taken and crowds standing at the back.

Ben Palmer cooked up a storm with monkfish - served of all things, with a peppercorn sauce. He said: “It’s actually a new food trend, with chefs using peppercorn sauce with a variety of fish and it actually works. It’s a classic and classics work for a reason.”

Flushing Harbour House’s Andi Tuck spoke excitedly of his fascination for mushrooms (Mycelium) and foraging. “Most of the ingredients I use, I can pinpoint to exactly where I got it from. And it’s that provenance - it ends up being more passionate and that passion comes out in the food. That’s what changes the dish from being a nice dish to amazing.”

Tuna was the choice of Chris Eden for his Cornish stew, returning to Cornwall from Devon’s Gidleigh Park to take on the Head Chef role at Watergate Bay Hotel.

He said: “You wouldn’t normally see tuna in Cornish waters but they’re full of them. It’s a celebration of produce. You cook to the seasons, making sure we use the best ingredients, celebrating what’s current on our shores.”

Jude’s Kereama from Kota restaurant in Porthleven cooked up his mum’s curry Laksa - a fusion of Indian and Malaysian ingredients with an array of fish and shellfish including scallops.

‘Looe Legends’, Fred Alsop from The Fish Market and Charlie Walters, finalist of Masterchef The Professionals who has recently started a new venture at The Gate, took to the stage together.

Their styles couldn’t be more different quipped Fred comparing his lack of formal training and laid back approach to Charlie’s tower of ‘tupperware’ and precision preparation.

Fred’s exuberance on stage waned slightly as he noted seriously: “In the last years, hospitality has been a no-mans land. The only way is to get Looe talked about like a Padstow or Rock.

“We are all invested in the local area, and we’ve got another great chef (in Charlie) starting up”.

Chef Nico Oikinomopoulos from Yamas, a new Greek restaurant opened in collaboration with Ben Palmer exactly a year ago, brought a Greek winter pork dish, using celery leaves; an unusual ingredient which he managed to source from Crocadan at St Mellion.

Ben Palmer said: “It’s a whole chain, in terms of supporting the fishmongers, supporting the veg suppliers, and the small independent businesses; those guys are the ones that are really taking care of their produce and what they’re doing. That speaks volumes to us. Very important in terms of our ethos.”. And his ethos? Quality ingredients, big on flavour, and local.

The two chefs waxed lyrical about their meeting in Kalamata; a culinary holiday romance of sorts turned into a reality. Ben speaks about Nico as his ‘brother’, despite mispronouncing his surname (who could blame him), to a laugh from the audience and shake of the head from Nico.

“For some unknown reason he wanted to leave Greece and come to England”, explains Ben. Now we have Greek cooking, in a nice environment by Greek chefs.”

Watching the chefs demo on stage; the camaraderie between them all, the banter and passion, is palpable. Ben explains afterwards: “Hospitality is tough at the minute. Working in a high-pressured environment, the cracks show, making it really important as a chef to take time out and speak to others in the same boat. It’s good for them to get out of the kitchen for a day, chat to other chefs.”

The festival was heralded a success by Cornwall Councillor for Looe East, Armand Toms. “This is one of the last big festival because it showcases the diverse food we’ve got in this area.

“I went to Ben’s first demonstration at 11am this morning and it was full up. It’s been a massive boost to the town and all credit to him and the team who have been helping him. It’s been fantastic.”

Looe Town Council deputy mayor Stephen Remington, said: “We think it’s extremely important to have such a festival in Looe. It brings new people in, showcases the town in ways that might not normally be the case, and raises the profile of some of our fabulous chefs and restaurants. I’d love to see the festival grow.”

A sentiment shared by Ed Hughes and Ben Palmer who both want to see Looe elevated on a par with other popular Cornish food towns. Ed Hughes says: “Padstow is there, and Porthleven, and we think of the personalities with Rick Stein or Nathan Outlaw, Looe isn’t being spoken about enough.”

And will Ben do it all again next year? “I’m a firm believer - you only really get out what you put in. So the more you put in, the harder you work, the more vision you have, and anything’s possible. If someone tells me I can’t do it, watch me!” That sounds like a yes.