Norwich Food Week: A Celebration of Creativity, Flavour and Community

I don’t know about you, but I seem to go into hibernation throughout the colder months! After coming home from work, all I want to do is stay home and binge watch another series.

While this may seem like the ideal evening, I often find myself realising that I haven’t caught up with friends and family in what feels like forever!

I’m always sending my friends posts on social media of the latest café or restaurant that has opened in Norwich, yet life always seems to get in the way of us going there.

Eating out isn’t just another meal - it’s treating yourself after a hard day, celebrating a job promotion, meeting someone for a first date, or improving communication with friends and family (it could even spark inspiration for you to cook at home!).

Whether you visit the market on your lunch break at work, grab a coffee and a cake with friends from a cosy café, or try a new restaurant with your partner, Norwich offers us a wealth of options for us to visit (it really is a city for us foodies!).

Between the 27th of February and the 8th of March, Norwich BID will be bringing Norwich Food Week to our fine city.

This week will celebrate the growing scene of independent cafés and restaurants across Norwich and encourage us to take a break from the stress of everyday life to try a new spot and create memories with friends and family!

I recently spoke to Tom Bates, Marketing Manager at Norwich BID, to discover what we can look forward to during Norwich Food Week, the importance of eating out, the independent food scene across our city and plans for Norwich Wine Week and Norwich Cocktail Week later this year.

What can we look forward to during Norwich Food Week, and what was the inspiration behind it?

Norwich Food Week is a city-wide celebration of food, with more than 50 independent restaurants, cafés and bars taking part.

Across the ten days, venues will be offering specially created dishes, discounted menus, limited-time specials and one-off events, giving people plenty of reasons to try somewhere new or return to a favourite spot.

We have successfully run Norwich Wine Week for several years and took over Norwich Cocktail Week last year, so creating a more explicitly food-focused event felt like a natural next step.

Norwich Food Week puts the spotlight firmly on dishes rather than drinks, celebrating the depth, creativity and quality of the city’s independent food scene and making it as accessible as possible for people to get involved.

What power does good food hold?

A lot! Just think of how often people talk about their favourite restaurants or cuisines. Those meals tend to leave a lasting impression. And eating out is rarely just about the food itself. It is about the shared experience, the atmosphere and the conversation that comes with it.

How did you decide who was involved in Norwich Food Week?

We wanted to create an event that benefits as many city businesses as possible, both large and small. We opened things up with a call for expressions of interest and invited venues across the city to get involved.

Alongside that, we also had a list of venues we were particularly keen to include, often based on the team’s own favourites and places we regularly visit ourselves!

Norwich has a huge number of independent restaurants and cafés that we genuinely love, so it felt important to actively encourage those businesses to take part while keeping the event open and inclusive for all food venues.

Describe Norwich’s independent food scene in three words!

Creative. Inventive. Community-driven.

How does it feel to be hosting the first Norwich Food Week?

It’s exciting to be part of, particularly seeing the quality and creativity coming from the venues involved.

We have been encouraged by how engaged both restaurants and the public have been so far, and we are looking forward to sharing even more venues, offers and events in the lead-up to the week itself.

The cost-of-living crisis has meant that many people have stopped eating out. How important was it to offer menus and deals with a wide price range?

It was vital. Norwich Food Week is about showing that great food can still feel special and indulgent, while remaining accessible.

By offering specially created menus and deals priced between £5 and £35, we are encouraging people to enjoy high-quality dining without it feeling out of reach. It is about affordable luxury. An opportunity to treat yourself, try somewhere new and enjoy the creativity of Norwich’s food scene without needing a major occasion or a big spend.

We are lucky to be surrounded by incredible local flavours across Norfolk. How does Norwich Food Week celebrate local flavours and products?

Many of the restaurants taking part already place a strong emphasis on locally sourced ingredients, and Norwich Food Week helps shine a light on that.

It is a chance for venues to showcase the quality of Norfolk produce and how it is being used creatively across the city.

How important is it to find time to eat out with friends and family?

It is really valuable. Eating out is a shared experience that allows people to slow down, connect and create memories together. There is also something distinctive about dining out that a takeaway can’t replicate, from the atmosphere and service to the sense of occasion that comes with sharing a meal in a restaurant or café.

What impact has social media had on the independent food scene across Norwich?

Many independent venues in Norwich have embraced social media as an essential way to showcase their food and personality, and to reach new customers. It has become a key marketing tool for the sector.

That said, social media is only part of the picture. What venues ultimately need is people through the door, enjoying meals in person, so while social platforms certainly help them spark interest, it is up to us as the customers to take that next step and go out to eat.

Ready meals and convenience foods continues to grow in popularity, meaning people can lose the enjoyment of food and view it as a chore. How important is it that people still appreciate and celebrate the beauty of good food?

It is really important. Freshly cooked food is generally healthier and far more enjoyable than relying on convenience options and can be very simple, easy and quick to make.

Beyond that, the act of cooking or being cooked for is an experience in itself- and something to be embraced. It is a moment to slow down, enjoy quality ingredients and share time with others, and that is something that would be a real loss if food started to feel like just another chore. A part of Norwich Food Week is to inspire creating new dishes and ways to cook at home including using different ingredients.

How can people use the Norwich Food & Drink Weeks app to navigate the event?

With the Norwich Food & Drink Weeks app people can browse all the Food Week offers in one place, favourite the ones they are most interested in, and explore any events taking place across the city.

The app also includes a gamified element. We are encouraging people to eat out three times during the week and scan in at the venues they visit. Anyone who collects three digital stamps in the app can then enter a competition to win prizes, including free meals out!

Norwich Wine Week and Norwich Cocktail Week will return later this year. What can we look forward to during these week-long celebrations of drink?

People can expect a similar city-wide approach, with a range of special offers, curated menus and one-off events, this time focused on wine and cocktails.

As with Food Week, the emphasis is on showcasing quality, creativity and variety, and offering something for everyone to enjoy.

What do you love most about these two weeks?

With Norwich Wine Week, I love how accessible it feels. I am not a wine connoisseur, so it is a great opportunity to take part in tastings, try new styles and start to build an appreciation for different wines in a relaxed, welcoming way.

Norwich Cocktail Week really highlighted the creativity of the city’s bars. The range and inventiveness on show last year was impressive. We ran a competition for the best cocktail of the week, and the winning drink from The Last, inspired by a carrot cake, perfectly summed up that creativity. I was also struck by the quality of the mocktails on offer, which were just as thoughtful and enjoyable as the cocktails themselves.

How can people use the app during these two weeks to discover participating locations?

We are working to keep the app experience as consistent and intuitive as possible across all three Food and Drink Weeks. During Norwich Wine Week and Norwich Cocktail Week, people will be able to use the app in much the same way as they do for Food Week, discovering participating venues, browsing offers, unlocking discounts and viewing events in one place.

How important is it for you to host food and drink related events throughout the year in Norwich?

The hospitality sector in Norwich is full of talent, creativity and hard work, and we want to make sure it gets the focus and attention it deserves, particularly at a time when many businesses are under pressure.

Hosting food and drink events throughout the year helps shine a spotlight on that talent consistently, encourages people to support local venues, and reminds residents and visitors just how strong and varied the city’s food and drink scene is.

Where can we head to keep up to date with the latest Norwich Food & Drinks Week news?

The best place to stay up to date is on social media.

Follow our official Instagram accounts for regular announcements, venue highlights, offers and event updates:

· Norwich Food Week: https://www.instagram.com/norwichfoodweek/

· Norwich Wine Week: https://www.instagram.com/norwichwineweek/

· Norwich Cocktail Week: https://www.instagram.com/norwichcocktailweek/