It’s just under two weeks to another thrilling Big Grill BBQ and Food Festival, celebrating 10 years on the festival circuit this summer, with some exciting new names added to the already stellar lineup in Herbert Park from Thursday August 22nd to Sunday August 25th, 2024.
New talent added includes traditional food conservationist, Max Jones, alpine transhumance guide, writer, photographer and food producer, who runs The Booley in West Cork. Max will be leading sessions on preserving food with salt and smoke, using all-natural methods based on traditions from eastern Scotland and the west coastline of Ireland.
Barrett Black, the fourth-generation pitmaster at The Original Black’s Barbecue in Texas founded by his grandparents, also joins Big Grill 24. With his dad, brother, and now over 125 team members, The Original Black’s Barbecue has grown to four locations, appeared on many TV shows, won loads of awards, and, most importantly, made countless people happy with their old-school Texas barbecue.
Award-winning Malaysian-born chef, Shamzuri (Sham) Hanifa joins the Big Grill lineup, demoing some of the dishes from across his popular Leitrim restaurants, and Dublin-born chef Mark O’Brien is new to the lineup, with ten years working in some of the best restaurants in London (Barbecoa, The Dairy, and Birch/Zebra Riding Club) giving him a grounding in whole animal butchery and live fire. Mark will demo dishes from his own Carolina-style barbecue restaurant, Snake Oil Barbecue, in Margate.
Managing Director of legendary company FX Buckley, a name that has been a trusted favourite in Dublin households for over 400 years, Stephen Buckley oversees all operations across the family’s portfolio of steakhouses, gastropubs, and victualler and grocer. Stephen will be joined at Big Grill 2024 by Wayne Kenny, the Executive Chef at FX Buckley and The Buckley Collection.
The new talent joins names already announced including, Rama Basilio, Jeremy Charles, Laurent Dagenais, Fingal Ferguson, Brad Leone, Evan Leroy, Cian Mahon, Melissa McCabe, Kevin O’Donnell, Marcus O’Laoire, Erica Paredes, Ben Quinn, Bradley Robinson, Andy Stubbs, Laura Sylvester, Genevieve Taylor, Killian Walsh and Nick Weston.
There’s lots of great new restaurants to add to the ever-growing list too, including Chimac, Chiya, Scorchio Dogs, and The King Sitric, and here’s TEN delicious things we’re very much looking forward to eating — just a tiny taster of the extraordinary array on offer over the course of the festival.
- Kevin O’Donnell – Grilled bread, leek and onion soubise and spicy date
- Cue Point — Live fire aubergine curry, with Kabuli pilau & borani banjan (vegan)
- Achara — Chiang mai sausage with nam prik num, a northern Thai-style herbal sausage with a burnt chilli relish.
- From The Ashes — Flank ribs al Asador taco, green sauce and pico de gallo
- Bahay X Erica Paredes collaboration — Grilled tri tip steak, calamansi pepper sauce
- Hang Dai — Skeaghanore duck bao, hoisin, pickled veg
- Kwanghi — BBQ miso aubergine marinated in Sichuan peppercorn, chilli bean paste & pickled black garlic
- Chimac — Smoked Korean BBQ chicken wings, with a K-BBQ glaze
- Chiya — The Berliner Kebab. German style döner kebab with Turkish ‘pide’ bread, special sauce, mixed seasonal veg, salad and chicken döner meat.
- Crudo — Peri peri BBQ mussel skewer
One of the opportunities to see certain chefs in action up close and in detail is as part of OFFSIDE, an intimate private dining area, nestled among the trees away from the hustle and bustle of the festival, providing a unique and immersive live fire dining experience. OFFSIDE will see a selection of different themed meals from different chefs, showcasing food dear to their hearts, with matching drinks, and including general admission too. Each sitting lasts 60-75 minutes with a choice of specially-curated menus from a line-up of exceptional chefs, with places limited to 30 guests and most sittings usually selling out in advance. Booking early is essential to secure your OFFSIDE seat in this not-to-be-missed experience.
Further information on OFFSIDE, all aspects of the festival and tickets for Big Grill Festival 2024 are available on https://biggrillfestival.com
Led by ingredients, fed by fire
Big Grill BBQ & Food Festival 2024 will be open daily for the following sessions:
– 4pm to 10pm on Thursday August 22nd and Friday August 23rd
– 11.00am to 4.00pm and from 5.30pm until 10.30pm on Saturday August 24th
- 12pm until 8pm on Sunday August 25th
General Admission tickets from €29.50 plus booking fee
General Admission + Rancho Relaxo Access €70 plus booking fee
Whole Hog Tickets (access to all 4 days) €60 SOLD OUT
Rancho Relaxo — Strictly Over 18s. An exclusive area within the festival where you can kick back and catch up with mates, work buddies and take a breather from the festival action. The Rancho and garden will feature a private bar, guaranteed seating (unreserved), posh loos and two complimentary drinks on arrival. You’ll also get fast track entry to the festival via the dedicated Rancho Relaxo lane.
