Enjoy Halal food and culture at weekend-long festival

The Halal Food Festival at the NEC will take place on the bank holiday weekend on Saturday, May 27 and Sunday, May 28.

With more than 150 exhibitors, outdoor street food vendors, an indoor exhibition with Muslim lifestyle stalls and entertainment, it will be a showcase for Islamic food and drink in the region.

Street food vendors including Afrikana, Malaysian Street Food, Myos Japanese Fusion, The Dutch Fishmen, Cleopatra from the middle east, artisan hot dogs by ‘Malik Butchers’ and Birmingham’s very own ‘Home of the Smash’, ‘Phat Jos’.

The main arena will play host to different Halal lifestyle brands ranging from fashion, jewellery, Islamic art, charitable causes, plus live cooking demonstrations from celebrity chefs such as ‘Homemade Savouries by Sara’ as featured on BBC and The Islam Channel.

There will also be an ‘Artisan Market’ hosted by Muslim Instashop Expo, with delicacies, home décor, arts and crafts, fashion and beauty from a mixture of small, start-up and Instagram businesses from Birmingham’s Monthly Muslim Market.

Bilal Khan, organiser and festival director behind the festival, said: “Being able to host The Halal Food Festival is like a dream come true bringing friends and families together to socialise, eat and celebrate the Halal lifestyle.

"We encourage all walks of like to join us to learn a little more about our integration into UK.

"It is also a great opportunity for us to champion Halal businesses, hoping to take them from being small start-ups to leading enterprises in their respected fields."

Tickets for the weekend festival, which runs between 11am and 7pm each day on Saturday, May 27 and Sunday, May 28, are available to buy from thehalalfoodfestival.com, with prices starting at £7.

For more information, go to the Facebook page at facebook.com/TheHalalFoodFestival, Twitter at twitter.com/tweetthff or Instagram at instagram.com/thehalalfoodfestival.