Top of the day, fellow food fanatics and Bristol aficionados.

I’ve spent the past few weeks trawling through food listings, press releases and obscurely-located event pages (come on guys, if you’re going to go to the trouble of putting on a great event – tell people about it!) to inform you of the tasty things happening this month.

Take a deep breath, put on your drinking boots and suck your tummy in – July is going to be BUSY…

The Headlines

First, the big news – firstly, that the shipping container food paradise that is Cargo 2 is going to be extended very soon! So we’ll have even more great local businesses to snack at, including the wonderful Lemonade (help them with their crowdfunding campaign – I want those burgers!)

There are a fair few birthdays this month, from contemporary veggie joint Flow turning 2, Strawberry Thief turning 1 under its new management, and Bristol Ferry celebrating 10 years of schlepping us around the harbour!

There are way too many exciting dinners and special events happening this month for me to summarise fully, so here are some highlights, or scroll down for the full list of July events (or check out the snazzy new calendar!)

• Sat 1st – A Tavola seafood lunch – 5 course seafood lunch, with aperitif. £30.
• Thu 6th – Nutmeg Nights – 4 course Indian tasting menu paired with wine. £25 for 4 courses, plus £19.50 for matching wine flight from Corks.
• Fri 7th – Rumageddon 5: A Good Day to Rum Hard – Caribbean rum tasting, with a welcome cocktail & tapas nibbles, plus music & dancing afterwards. £22.50. 
• Sat 8th – Summer Brewhouse Session #2 at Lost & Grounded – a party at L&G’s Brislington brewery, with a tap takeover from Verdant Brewing Co, food from Buckland Burgers and music.
• Tue 18th – Eat Your Words: Roberta’s Pizza at Bertha’s – 5 courses inspired by this New York institution. £30.

• Thu 27th – Bristol Film Festival: The Graduate at Avery’s Wine Cellars – a screening of the film, followed by a 3 course meal paired with wine. £60.
• Sat 29th – Mother’s Ruin: A Cabaret About Gin – a raucous journey through the history of gin.
• Sun 30th – Naasto Baasto pop-up at Bristol Spirit – Gujurati home cooking, including several starters, thali and dessert, with the option of paired cocktails. £25. 
• Sun 30th – Coexist presents: A Kids’ Restaurant – Kids age 11-14 can take part in a cooking workshop and cook their parents or guardians a meal! £25 per child.

Festivals:

Frickin’ hell, where to start? As well as the big hitters this month, we’ve got lots of local summer fetes, markets, street parties and garden parties. Here are a few to look out for:

• 1st-2nd – Grillstock – BBQ, eating competitions, music (including headline sets from The Darkness & The Pharcyde) and booze. Niice. Tickets still available for both days.
• 7th – Bristol EATS Summer Fling at Tobacco Factory – an outdoor food market with music, magic & games.
• 7th-9th – Clifton Fest – Music & entertainment at various venues around Clifton.
• 14th-16th – Dinema & Bristol Independents Summer Fete – several classic film screenings with a food market, as well as a weekend-long summer fete to celebrate Bristol’s buzzing indie business scene.
• 15th – Avery’s Craft Beer Festival – 7 brewers will showcase their beers, including Arbor Ales, Moor Beer, Left Handed Giant, Wiper & True and Cannonball Ales.
• 15th – Pork & Cider Festival at The Royal Oak – sausages, cider & music, yay!
• 21st-23rd – Bristol Harbour Festival – one of the big events in the Bristol calendar, the festival will include maritime events, live music, food markets, circus & more.
• 21st-23rd – Yardfest – in tandem with the Harbour Festival, Underfall Yard are doing their own party with food, live music and family-friendly entertainment.
• 29th-31st – Upfest – Europe’s largest street art & grafitti festival, taking place on North St which will include live painting, music, food stalls & parties.

Classes & tastings

In the mood to learn something new, or gain some trivia for a pub quiz?

• 6th – Intro to Irish whiskey at Shebeen, £25
• 8th – Sherry and tapas tasting at Bristol Wine School, £35.
• 8th – Wild Gin Workshop with Andy Hamilton, £40.
• 12th – Champagne tasting at Weber & Tring’s, £35.
• 13th – Rum and chocolate tasting at Cox & Baloney, £20.
• 21st – Grains, Gradients & Graffiti beer tour, £20. 
• 29th – Bristol Brewery Tour, £45.

Newbies

Some new places to visit this month…

• Pancake & milkshake fans, there will soon be a second branch of American diner Rocotillos on Gloucester Road!
• New bakery The Bristol Loaf is open on Church Road in St George.
• Japanese street fooders Tsukemono are making their debut at BS5 Market on 2 July.
• Clifton Pantry has just opened in Clifton Village.
• Ramen bar Sticks and Broth have opened a second branch on Stokes Croft.
• Yakinori will soon be bringing tasty Japanese food to Park St.
• Micro pub Snuffy Jack’s Ale House has just opened in Fishponds.
• The Pipal Tree is now open in Easton – fresh Punjabi meals with a British twist; they also do brunch!

That’s it for this month – let me know what you get up to over on Twitter, and I’ll see you for the August guide!

Other handy guides:

• Bristol’s Best Pub Gardens
• Where to get your sugar fix in Bristol
• Bristol Pub Crawls
• Vegetarian Bristol & Bath
• Bristol’s Best Burgers

Dates for the diary

(Or see the Calendar)

• Sat 1st-Sun 2nd – Grillstock Festival
• Sat 1st – Whisky tasting: Speyside single malts at The Woods 
• Sat 1st – Prosecco bus 
• Sat 1st – Folk House Summer Market 
• Sat 1st – A Tavola seafood lunch at The Forge
• Sun 2nd – Grains, Gradients & Graffiti beer tour 
• Sun 2nd – BS5 Market, St Georges Park
• Mon 3rd – Free gin tasting at Watershed 
• Mon 3rd – Sourdough pizza making course at Pizza Workshop
• Tue 4th – Fortitude beer launch at Bristol Beer Factory 
• Wed 5th – Bread making workshop at Thornbury Castle 
• Wed 5th-Thu 6th – Cooking for university class at Little Kitchen 
• Thu 6th – Intro to Irish whiskey at Shebeen 
• Thu 6th – Nutmeg Nights, 4 course Indian tasting menu 
• Thu 6th – Mexican street food class at Square Food Foundation 
• Fri 7th-Sun 9th – Clifton Fest 
• Fri 7th – Wine tasting at Thornbury Castle 
• Fri 7th – BEATS street food party at Tobacco Factory
• Fri 7th – Burger Night at No.12 Easton 
• Fri 7th – Rumageddon #5 at Pata Negra
• Fri 7th – Pump House Gin Night: Nordes Gin 
• Fri 7th – Pinkmans Charity Banquet 
• Fri 7th – Nailsea & Backwell cider festival 
• Sat 8th – Distillers Table at Psychopomp 
• Sat 8th – Strawberry Thief 1st birthday party
• Sat 8th – Wild gin workshop
• Sat 8th – Garden party in St Werburghs
• Sat 8th – Brewery Tour at Lost & Grounded
• Sat 8th – Summer Brewhouse Session #2 at Lost & Grounded 
• Sat 8th – Disco brunch terrace party at Motion
• Sat 8th – Sherry and tapas tasting at Bristol Wine School
• Wed 12th – Champagne tasting at Weber & Tring’s 
• Thu 13th – Rum & chocolate tasting at Cox & Baloney
• Thu 13th – Casa Rojo wine tasting at Clifton Sausage
• Fri 14-Sun 16th – Dinema film screenings & food market
• Fri 14th – Ten Years at The Pump House 
• Fri 14th – Bowood House wine dinner 
• Fri 14th – Bristol Gin Club: southern hemisphere gins 
• Sat 15-Sun 16th – Bristol Independents Summer Fete 
• Sat 15th – Bristol Brewery School launch party
• Sat 15th – Bread Matters class at Square Food Foundation
• Sat 15th – Club Tropicana boat party 
• Sat 15th – Sausage and Cider Festival at The Royal Oak
• Sat 15th – Avery’s Craft Beer Festival 
• Sat 15th – Gin and tonic tasting at Bristol Wine School
• Sat 15th – Ginfest at Motion 
• Sat 15th – Bristol Brewery Tour
• Sat 15th – Edible Summer BBQ 
• Sun 16th – Mad Hatter’s Tea Party at The Grand Pier, Weston-Super-Mare 
• Sun 16th – Bread masterclass at Little Kitcchen 
• Tue 18th – Eat Your Words: Roberta’s Pizza at Bertha’s 
• Wed 19th – Cheese and wine tasting at Arch House Deli
• Fri 21st – Grains, Gradients & Graffiti beer tour 
• Fri 21st – Caribbean evening at Little Kitchen 
• Fri 21st – Tea blending workshop + Tea cocktails at Bluebird Tea Co.
• Fri 21st- Sun 23rd – Yardfest at Underfall Yard 
• Fri 21st- Sun 23rd – Harbour Festival http://bristolharbourfestival.co.uk/
• Sat 22nd – Intro to wine at Bristol Wine School
• Tue 25th – Guest chef evening at The Pony & Trap 
• Wed 26th – Vodka and gin tasting at Bristol Spirit
• Wed 26th – Aromatic Whites and Light Bodied Reds tasting at Avery’s
• Thu 27th – Bristol Film Festival: The Graduate at Avery’s Wine Cellars 
• Thu 27th – Gin Club at Milk Thistle 
• Fri 28th – BEATS street food party at Steam 
• Fri 28th – Alfresco dining experience at SS Great Britain
• Sat 29th – Prosecco tasting at Bristol Wine School 
• Sat 29th – DIY Tapas and Dine at Little Kitchen
• Sat 29th – Bristol Brewery Tour 
• Sat 29th – Mother’s Ruin: A Cabaret About Gin at Old Market Assembly
• Sat 29th-Mon 31st – Upfest 
• Sun 30th – Grains, Gradients & Graffiti beer tour 
• Sun 30th – Spanish Sundays bottomless cava & tapas brunch at Pata Negra 
• Sun 30th – Co-Exist presents: A Kids’ Restaurant 
• Sun 30th – Beeses Sunday Roast river trip 
• Sun 30th – Naasto Baasto pop-up at Bristol Spirit