It’s not often you enter a food festival via a 12th-century castle, but this is Wales, and things are different here.
It’s not often you enter a food festival via a 12th-century castle, but this is Wales, and things are different here. I’d come to St Donat’s Castle, a coastal stronghold with serious Game of Thrones energy, to attend Fantastic Fête, a culinary circus courtesy of the street food masterminds behind Street Food Circus.
Now in its second year, this two-day foodie festival takes the humble village fête and catapults it into a fever dream of circus acts, epic eats, roller rinks, and live music, all set against the backdrop of a moody medieval castle turned college perched above the dramatic Glamorgan Heritage Coast.
While I’m absolutely a street food girlie, I was mostly keen to have a look around the festival location at Donat’s Castle. Wales’s oldest continuously inhabited castle is most often moonlighting as UWC Atlantic College, a boarding school for the world’s royal offspring and diplomatic wunderkinder.
Once described as “Hogwarts for hippies,” UWC has an impressive alumni, including Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, Willem-Alexander, King of the Netherlands, and even Wales’s own First Minister, Eluned Morgan.
For most of the year, the castle is off-limits unless you’re fluent in Model United Nations. But Fantastic Fête throws open the gates, inviting regular folk to traipse through the grounds like medieval freeloaders in search of bao buns.
The castle was purchased in 1925 by newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, who undertook extensive renovations. In 1960, it was gifted to UWC Atlantic College, which now uses it as its boarding school campus, oozing boy-wizard vibes.
While modern touches have crept in, the Castle College still flaunts its medieval drama: Bradenstoke Hall, the Inner Courtyard, the Great Hall, and a Dining Hall straight out of a fantasy film. Stone walls and soaring ceilings, all very “feast before battle.”
The large grounds are manicured to perfection and include a lido by the sea, ideal for a grand-scale knees-up. That’s where Street Food Circus comes in.
It is known for transforming unexpected spaces into whimsical, food-filled extravaganzas, with pop-ups at Forest Feastival in Merthyr Mawr and the Big Banquet in Caldicot.
They have really outdone themselves with a festival-style foodie extravaganza with a bougie big-top feel.
Matt the Hat, founder of Street Food Circus, said: “We’re thrilled to be back for a second year at St Donat’s – it’s a unique site, between the castle and the sea.
“Fantastic Fȇte is our biggest event of the summer and represents everything we do, remixing and reinventing the classic village fȇte with our travelling circus of family entertainment, the best street food around and, after dark, one of our favourite DJs bringing the party.”
After missing the first year, I lobbied hard for this one, firmly arguing with the powers that be (Kath) that eating my way around a circus-themed fête was, in fact, vital journalistic work.
Tacos, a castle, wrestlers in masks, a man on an actual tightrope! If that’s not a legitimate assignment, I don’t know what is. I all but shouted, “send me in, coach”.
Ever the eager beaver, I arrived just as the gates opened, half-expecting a frantic dash for dumplings and a 40-minute queue for tacos.
Instead, thanks to timed ticketed entry, the whole thing was easy breezy. No lines snaking around the castle, no elbow wars with hipsters over wagyu sliders. I didn’t wait more than ten minutes for anything, including Korean Fried Chicken, wine, and churros.
This has honestly long been my trick for food festivals: arrive early doors and have truffle parmesan fries for breakfast. Smashing.
Along with seemingly decent organisation, the busy event is brilliantly spaced out, with vendors and entertainment spread across lush lawns and around the seafront lido.
You’ll also find plenty of seating and space to lay out your picnic blankets when you need a post-pizza snooze. Trust me, you’ll need it.
Take your time exploring, there’s no need to rush here. You can graze at your own languid pace without the usual festival stress-panic that someone else is getting the last portion of truffle fries. It’s a supremely chill vibe, and I’m here for it.
The food is obviously the standout here. Sure, I love a bearded juggler as much as anyone, but as an elder millennial with a salary to prioritise on street food rather than housing, I was here for the goddam Korean chicken and cocktails.
Wearing a floaty dress to combat the inevitable bloat, I boldly ate my way through as many stalls as my 5’2 frame could manage. First stop, Fire & Flank, one of my all-time street food idols and steak masters.
I beelined straight for them, heart set on their signature: a glorious hunk of beef flank, cooked low and slow sous vide for over two hours until it’s melt-in-the-mouth tender, then seared to perfection for that all-important sizzle and char.
It’s served atop a generous bed of cheesy garlic mash and finished with a punchy house chimichurri that packs just the right amount of zing. Heaven on a plate.
My husband, playing the role of enabler, talked me into trying the steak roll too: flame-cooked flank piled into a toasted brioche bun with rocket and smoked garlic mayo. Yes, it was a tenner. Yes, it was technically a bap. But we did the maths, and each glorious bite worked out at around £2.50, money well chewed.
Up next, Bone Cartel called to me like a deep-fried siren. Their Korean chicken strips were almost too pretty to eat. Buttermilk-battered, doused in spicy Korean sauce, scattered with pickled chillies, cured spring onion, and lashings of Gou, this dish had a colour-pop aesthetic that would make an Instagram girlie weep.
Bone Cartel, now operating out of their Porthcawl shop, is redefining fried chicken in Wales. What started as a street food stall has exploded into a full-blown obsession, and with good reason.
Thanks to a secret blend of spices, their batter is crispy and golden perfection. It locks in superbly moist chicken in a really decent-sized portion for just £12. It’s no surprise they waltzed off with ‘Best Main Dish’ at the British Street Food Awards.
Honestly, I think it might be the best fried chicken in Wales. And I say that as someone who has eaten a frankly irresponsible amount of fowl, ranging from award-winning street food to chicken curry off the bone from Cardiff institution Dorthys at 4 a.m., which obviously comes a close second.
In between, I also managed to squeeze in tacos dripping in salsa from El Cabron, sugar-dusted churros from Church of Churros, and a sinfully good cheese toastie from The Melted Cheese Co. Like I said, journalistic duty. I suffer for my craft.
There’s a reason Street Food Circus draws serious foodie crowds. This isn’t just a food market; it’s a carefully curated gastro experience with a family-friendly ethos.
The food sections are split into different zones, Coco Loco Mexico, where everything is spicy, sweet, or both; Feast From The East, with proper South Asian comfort food; and the Street Food Circus All-Stars basically the culinary Avengers: Bone Cartel, Smokin Griddle, Bare Bones Pizza, Two Lads Kitchen, and more, many of them award-winners or viral favourites.
For sips between eats, Welsh brewing titan Tiny Rebel Brewery poured pints, Lola’s Cocktail Bar shook summer favourites, and Buzz Coffee and a fresh lemonade stand kept things refreshed throughout the day.
Lemonade stands and bubble machines also add that sugar-fuelled, slightly surreal, fête-meets-festival energy. Throw in a bit of hula hooping, knife juggling, and a DJ dropping beats, and you’ve got a whole vibe.
Trust me, village fêtes weren’t like this in the ’80s. Back then, it was whack-a-mole, tepid squash, and your mum muttering that she wasn’t paying a whole pound for an ice cream when there were “perfectly good choc ices” at home.
Street Food Circus boss Matt told Wales Online: “We’re always looking for that perfect balance between the favourites people come back for every year and fresh new talent we can help spotlight.” They’ve nailed it. Again.
After a heroic amount of eating, I went for a gentle stroll through a stream of bubbles, naturally, before settling down with rapt children to watch a troupe of hyperactive circus performers attired somewhere between Midsommar and Waiting for Godot with full ‘theatre kid’ energy.
They skipped, flipped, climbed ropes, strutted wires, and twirled flaming batons like it was all perfectly normal for a Saturday in a 12th-century Welsh castle. It was full Cirque du Cymru energy, with a distinctly bohemian vibe, fewer sequins, more moustaches.
And just when I thought things couldn’t get more surreal, I spotted a Mexican wrestling match, where a masked luchador was getting dramatically flung around by a man who looked like Jason Momoa if you’d ordered him off Wish. The kids loved it. So did the adults, judging by the number of people filming it in disbelief.
Elsewhere, Artful Dodgems provided roller disco realness, with DJs spinning feel-good tunes while families dreamily danced under bubble machines. God, it was wholesome.
There were also paid-for extras like circus workshops, face painting, bubble discos, interactive art corners, and axe throwing, because why not? Fancy a cool down? You could book a sauna or even swim lazy lengths in the outdoor lido, which had views over the coast.
You can also pick up a gift in the chilled makers market area curated by Annie Lolo. This market provides a brilliant platform for a group of Welsh Independent Makers, showcasing everything from jewellery to ceramics and homewares.
Honestly, I’ve never seen a food festival cram in so much joyful nonsense. It’s like someone gave a village fête a budget, a Pinterest board, and a vague brief that simply said “make it maverick”.
For a tenner early bird, and the kids in free, it’s surprisingly good value for a festival. I only caught the daytime action, but as the sun starts to dip, the vibe shifts.
Out go sugar-high face-painted toddlers; in comes DJ Yoda with his 80s Mixtape Party Starter, brimming with retro anthems and guilty pleasures of the 1980s and beyond.
Elder Millennials, NOW is your time. Get that body glitter on and get ready to sing all the words to Push It like the cool little raver you are.
Yes, like any street food event in the UK, you’ll absolutely torch your weekly budget on steak baps, tacos, and cocktails, but honestly, I think it’s worth it.
Between the showstopping food, the castle-meets-circus setting, and the chaotic brilliance of the entertainment, Fantastic Fête is the ultimate summer blowout. If you’re going to splurge anywhere this season, make it a Street Food Circus event; you won’t regret it.
Street Food Circus is selling tickets now via its website at Street Food Circus. The festival is on again tomorrow – Sunday, August 3.