Port Stephens will turn into seafood central in August when the Love Seafood Festival returns.
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The month-long festival, which attracted more than 26,000 people to the Port last year, celebrates fresh seafood and coastal cuisine with a program of live cooking demonstrations, tastings, signature dinners, lunch and dinner specials, oyster tasting and shucking, educational talks and children’s activities.
A gala dinner at Broughtons At The Bay on Saturday will kick off the festivities.
The dinner will be hosted by international food celebrity Lyndey Milan and feature five courses prepared by Port chefs Ben Way from Little Beach Boat House, Mat Key from The Little Nel, Ludovic Poyer from the Poyers plus Michael Jenkins from The Anchorage and Mitchell Turner from the not yet opened Rick Stein restaurant at Bannisters Port Stephens.
“It is so exciting to see an occasion like the Love Seafood gala dinner driving renewed interest in the provenance and sustainability of food,” Ms Milan said.
“It’s one of the many ways that the month-long festival reconnects people with food source and the local farmers of the sea.”
Credited with changing the way Australians think about food and wine, Ms Milan is the former food director of Australian Women’s Weekly.
Her own Taste of Australia series has been shown around the world.
“My philosophy is simple – support Australian made and locally produced,” Lyndey says.
“When you start with an exceptional piece of fresh seafood you don’t need fancy techniques or ingredients to trick it up and Port Stephens seafood is up there with the world’s best.”
Each gala dinner chef will dish up their tribute to the Port’s seafood.
Port Stephens oyster farmer Mark Hunter will serve an entree of fresh oysters before Way, Key and Poyer – who cooked for the gala diner last year – plus Turner and Jenkins dish up their courses of fresh seafood.
All seafood enjoyed at the dinner will be harvested from Port Stephens such as oysters, snapper and Hunter River prawns.
A number of Port eateries will offer Love Sea Food Festival menus (listed below) throughout the month of August. The Love Seafood Signature Series also returns (participating venues listed below).
The Love Sea Food Festival weekend will allow people to try, buy and talk seafood with farmers.
This weekend will also feature seafood masterclasses, entertainment, fish feeding, touch tanks, interactive displays and more from 11am on August 18 and 10am on August 19.
Also read:
Love Seafood Festival Menus
Cookabarra Restaurant and Function Centre, Bobs Farm
Farm fresh, baked or battered barra with aquaculture greens and your choice of entrée and beverage for lunch
$45pp
Horizon Golf Course, Salamander Bay
Premium fresh seafood lunch and dinner specials ,with a choice of beverage
$28pp
Evviva Café and Wine Bar, Nelson Bay
Local chilli mud crab linguini lunch, Monday to Friday, with a glass of wine will be $35pp.
Murray’s Brewery, Bobs Farm
Lunch special of local oysters kilpatrick and grilled barra on a spicy Asian salad, with a wine or half pint of Core Range Beer
$35pp
Little Beach Boathouse, Nelson Bay
Catch of the day and chef’s signature prawn cocktail with a glass of Little Beach Boathouse wine – available for lunch or dinner
$50pp
Sienna’s Pizzeria Bar & Restaurant, Nelson Bay
Salt and pepper baby snapper and oysters with beverage for dinner
$50pp
Wests Nelson Bay Diggers
Your choice of fresh local fish with a glass of Wests white wine for dinner Friday to Sunday
$28pp
The Anchorage, Corlette
The Galley Kitchen’s steamed local oysters and fresh Port Stephens seafood antipasto with a glass of Brokenwood Wine for lunch, Monday to Friday
$50pp
Moonshadow-TQC Cruises
Saturday evening twilight cruise, featuring local produce, seafood and dessert bar
$69pp
Love Seafood Signature Series
The Little Nel, Nelson Bay
A four course seafood degustation lunch for $49pp
Horizons Golf Resort, Salamander Bay
Nine and Dine Signature Series: A seafood dinner on Friday, August 10 after nine social holes of golf, followed by a complimentary drink and a feast of fresh local seafood for $60pp.
The Anchorage, Corlette
Signature Series Seafood and Semillon Dinner on Friday, August 31 an incredible, seven course, seafood and wine degustation for $165pp. Wines from Brokenwood and McWilliams.