Here we go – spring sun and showers, beer gardens, festivals and a bagful of bank holidays!
It’s time to rub your hands together excitedly and start planning your next few weeks of eating and drinking…
News
First up, a big congratulations to COR, Marmo and The Blaise Inn for each being awarded a Bib Gourmand by the Michelin Guide, which celebrates restaurants offering high quality food at competitive prices. Bulrush and Paco Tapas also retained their Michelin stars, and Wilson’s and The Ethicurean retained their green Michelin stars.
Along with the sunshine (fingers crossed), April sees the return of Beeses for riverside drinks and events. Along with that you can now book boat trips to Beeses with Bristol Ferry or Bristol Packet, plus a bunch of harbourside gin cruises or cream tea trips, or fish and chips on The Matthew!
Get some dates in your diary for May – BS5 Market is returning on 7th May at the Beehive Centre, and St Nicks Night Market is back on 5th May!
RaviOllie are popping up at Kitchen by KASK for three weeks (Thu – Sat evenings) from 6th April, with a range of pasta dishes and Italian wines.
For those of you looking ahead to June, the team from fab steakhouse Pasture are doing a special Steak & Beer event at the Wiper and True taproom on Saturday 17th June, priced at £75 per person (minimum table/booking size of four)
And finally, tickets are still available for Bristol Craft Beer Festival (9-10 June), where you can enjoy unlimited samples of over 300 beers from 50+ breweries. Tickets are £55 + bf.
Bank holiday weekends
We’ve got a fair few bank holiday weekends coming up, starting with the four-day Easter weekend from 7 – 10th April.
A few pubs are doing Easter weekend beer festivals, including The Volunteer near Cabot Circus and The Llandoger Trow on King Street.
Coming up later in the month on the early May bank hoiday weekend, the East Bristol Brewery Trail! Head along on Saturday 29th & Sunday 30th April and make your way to the seven breweries taking part, who will each be hosting their own entertainment, food and of course beer!
Dinners and special events
From markets and festivals to Easter lunches, make sure you get a few of these dates in your calendar…
- Gin cruise with Bristol Ferry, Thu 6th & Thu 20th, £20
- Easter Sunday lunch at Clifton Observatory, Sun 9th, from £26
- Cocktails, Canapes and Comedy at The Milk Thistle, Sun 9th, £30
- Nigerian Cookery Class at Coexist Community Kitchen, Wed 12th, £35
- Hopyard beer festival at Propyard, Fri 14th & Sat 15th, £40
- EAT: Bedminster, Sat 15th, free entry
- Fish and chips on The Matthew, Wed 19th, £33
- Rathpop x The MAZI Project Supper Club, Wed 19th, £35
- Drink & Draw Social at Le Vignoble, Tue 18th, £20
- 8 course vegan tasting menu at Foliage, Sat 8th & Sat 22nd, £80
- Bristol Whisky Festival, Sat 22nd, from £30
- Bottomless Buger Club at Burger Theory, Sun 23rd, £39.50
- Gin & Jazz with Hendrick’s Gin at The Milk Thistle, Thu 27th, £30
- Whisky and Cheese with Glenfiddich at The Milk Thistle, Sun 30th, £30
Classes, tours and tastings
Try something new this month…
- Bristol street food tour, Fri 7th or Sat 15th, £20
- Dawkins Ales Brewery Tour, Sat 8th, £15
- Mexican street food evening at Cooking It, Wed 12th, £65
- Foraging walk for wild edible and medicinal plants, Fri 14th, £34
- Sushi-making Workshop at The Community Farm, Sat 15th, £68
- Champagne and sparkling wine masterclass, Sat 15th, £40
- Bristol Cider Tasting Tour, Sat 15th & Sat 29th, £34
- Hotspots & Hidden Treasures food tour, Sat 15th, 22nd and 29th, £65
- Bristol Food Tour: Delicious Desserts Tour, Sun 16th, £35
- Northern Rhone Vs Southern Rhone wine tasting at Cave, Tue 18th, £35
- Port Masterclass at The Kensington Arms, Sat 18th, £40
- ‘Ca Dei Maghi’ Meet The Winemaker at Le Vignoble, Wed 19th, £20
- Gluten-Free Baking Workshop, Wed 19th, £65
- Australia and New Zealand wine tasting at The Scrandit, Wed 19th, £30
- Cook Korean Cuisine at Cooking It, Thu 20th, £70
- Sensory Chocolate Tasting at Raw Space, Thu 20th & Fri 21st, £35
- Cook Up with Kim at Easton Community Centre, Sat 22nd, £15
- Truffles and pralines workshop at Zara’s Chocolates, Sat 22nd, £50
- Bristol Craft Beer Experience tour, Sat 22nd, £65
- Ghanaian Cookery Class at Cooking It, Mon 24th, £35
- Chile and Argentina wine tasting at The Scrandit, Wed 26th, £30
- Wine and cheese tasting in the Cheddar Valley, Fri 28th, from £79
New openings
Now open after a long wait are French-inspired MUSE Brasserie on Prince Street and funky pizzeria Pizzucci on Gloucester Road. Horts in the city centre has also had a glamorous makeover, and now has rooms to stay in above the pub.
Bringing a modern spin on the retro caff, Lucky Strike is also now open on East Street in Bedminster, Ramen Zen on Filton Avenue, and a new buffet style Chinese hot pot restaurant has opened in Redcliffe.
The Aperitivo Co. have opened a new bar on Colston Street, selling vermouth flights, draught cocktails and snacks. Koottaan is a new Indian street food restaurant on St Nicholas Street, and Guru J‘s latest Bombay-style burger restaurant is now open on Cheltenham Road.
There are a few more new openings coming soon, including a bar from Bristol Beer Factory in what was Wild Beer in Wapping Wharf, Stuffed cafe on Sandy Park Road in Brislington, plus a new seafood restaurant called Noah’s in the former Lockside cafe in Cumberland Basin, from the team behind the award-winning Scallop Shell restaurant in Bath.
The Viet Kitchen are opening a second restaurant on Cotham Hill, Burger Theory are also opening a second restaurant on Stokes Croft, and popular street food stall Banh Wagon is also opening in the city centre.
Jus a few weeks after opening their first branch on Clifton Triangle, Crosstown have opened their second doughnut shop on Bond Street in Cabot Circus.
That’s it for this month, you can see more of the latest food news by following A Life Less Organised on Facebook, see what I’m eating over on Instagram or come and say hi on Twitter.
Byee!
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A Life Less Organised 
Gorgeous food photography and write up. Thank you for sharing!