Get a taste of the region at Sample Food Festival

CHEFS, producers and foodies will come together for the Sample Food Festival on September 6, after the event was saved by experienced events planner Nadja Konietzko.

The festival will feature live cooking demonstrations, workshops and masterclasses, with a range of dishes available for sampling from $5 to $15.

Crystalbrook Byron executive chef Tiffany Jones will demonstrate how to make her signature eleven-layer chocolate cake, while Elements of Byron executive chef Craig Robertson will showcase his famous smoked duck.

Hotel Marvell’s head chef Marcello Polifrone and Jordan Staniford, who is head chef at Capiche in Ballina, will go head-to-head in a mystery box cooking challenge, creating an original dish using ingredients from sponsor Bay Grocer.

The Golden Fork Awards are also returning, with dishes to be judged in two categories — sweet and savoury.

“We have 20 food vendors, and everyone had to nominate a dish to go into the competition,” Konietzko said.

The festival will also feature a foraging class with bush foods pioneer Peter Hardwick, a fermenting workshop with Katerina Lazareva from Byron Fermenting, and a pisco and ceviche masterclass hosted by the team from Wollongbar’s Peruvian eatery, Bonito.

Julz Recsei from North Byron Liquor Merchants will host an Agave spirits tasting masterclass, while Eddie Brook from Cape Byron Distillery will lead a masterclass to launch a new spritz.

The all-ages event will also include a kids’ cooking class, where children will make gnocchi with North Byron Hotel chef Jedd Rifai.

Myss Events founder and festival director Konietzko moved to the Northern Rivers from Germany in 2007 after falling in love with Byron Bay during a surf trip. She worked at the Orient Express Asian eatery before moving to Byron at Byron (now Crystalbrook), where she worked as a wedding and events maître d’.

She had just completed an 11-year tenure at Bluesfest, most recently as chief operating officer, when the opportunity to take on the Sample Food Festival arose.

“I saw the ad that this was for sale two weeks after I left Bluesfest, so it was really well-timed,” she said.

But it has been a quick turnaround, as the deal only settled on July 2.

“With my experience, I knew I could take it on and make it happen,” Konietzko said. “I’m passionate about keeping festivals alive. I’m new to the food world, I must admit, but it’s nice to have something new to get your head around. I love the concept. The response has been really positive — it’s a much-loved event, I must say.”

Konietzko has worked to make the event more inclusive by expanding the number of vendors beyond selected sponsors, offering a wider variety of food and drink products.

The 2025 festival will be held at Bangalow Showground on September 6. After the recent cancellation of the Byron Writers Festival due to heavy rain, Konietzko is hoping for clear skies.

“You do build resilience if you’ve been in these situations before,” she said. “You have to have a contingency plan in place.”

Tickets are available online via Oztix, costing $5 for adults, while children under 16 can attend for free. Masterclasses and workshops are an additional cost.