07 Nov Mill Road Winter Fair 2013
5 Days to Go for Cambridge’s biggest feast – Only a few days to go for the biggest Food feast in Cambridge, The Mill Road Winter Fair. The year certainly has flown by! The Cambridge food Tour can look back on a very exciting year in which I have met a lot of foodies, different cultures and locals. Sharing my love of food and Cambridge is never boring and with the local food scene on a roll, there is so much to share.
Pretty much to my surprise, I have had quite a few requests for tours for the 7th of December, unfortunately, there will be no tours that day as it would clash with the Mill Road Winter Fair. I probably would lose my guests making our way through this incredible feast. If you’re planning to visit Cambridge, I can highly recommend making your way to Mill Road. It is very easy to get to.
Directions
By car
Cambridge is at the best of times a very busy city so I recommend you leave your car at home. If you live outside Cambridge I advise taking public transport not only to avoid the traffic but also so you can enjoy all the wonderful drinks on the fair and at the local pubs.
If you do decide to take the car, you can leave it at one of the park and rides on the outskirts of Cambridge. The most convenient one is Newmarket Road so you can get off at the Grafton Centre. It will be very busy in Cambridge that day with Christmas shoppers and people going to the fair so I really don’t recommend taking your car into Cambridge. If you do, the closest car park is Queen Ann Car park, the Grafton Centre. or a bit further away from the Grand Arcade.
From the city centre
Make your way to Regent Street, turn left just before Pizza Hut and cross Parkers Piece. When you get to Reality Checkpoint ( the lamp post at the centre of Parkers Piece) turn right. Cross the road at the traffic lights and you’re at the Mill Road winter fair.
From the railway station
Turn right when you leave the station. Make you’re way through the car park and turn left onto the walkway just before the bridge. Follow the pathway. At the end you have 2 options:
- Turn right into Devonshire road – you will end up halfway Mill road
- Turn right and at the traffic lights go right. Keep following the road until you get to the main road and you will see Parkers Piece on the other side. Turn right and follow the road. It will take you less than a minute to get to the start of Mill Road.
My suggestion is take the 2nd option so you will not miss anything. This is the starting point of the Mill Road winter fair.
About the Mill Road Winter Fair
Mill Road Winter Fair is a celebration of the area’s community. It is always on the first Saturday in December and this year it will take place on 7th December. It’s an event created and run by people from the Mill Road area with almost everyone joining in and contributing something; community groups, faith centres, businesses, entertainers, residents, visitors … everyone has something individual to contribute.
Although the Mill Road Winter Fair is a Christmas Fair all about uniting and celebrating the community, you could easily think it is a Food Festival. Since the start of the fair in 2005, it has grown from strength to strength. Visitors from far afield make their way to Mill Road these days and have added it to their calendar of yearly events. The closure of Mill Road for this event has really made a huge difference as visitors can now enjoy the day without having to worry about the traffic and to be honest it makes enjoying the day so much better as there is a lot going on in the street itself from a Carnival parade to people roaming around dressed up and wearing their own created hat with the chance of winning a price to buskers and dance groups.
How to prepare for & what to do on this magnificent day
1. Take good walking shoes
2. Take a good sense of humour
3. Bring a good appetite (don’t have breakfast or very little)
4. Make sure you have time on your hands as it is full day out
5. Don’t forget the after Fair parties in the pubs where musicians play on an impromptu basis
6. Eat small portions, as the best thing here is to enjoy the array and diversity of food
What is Mill Road like?
Have you ever been to Mill Road? What to compare it with? With the diversity of shops, nationalities, great pubs in which many of them you will find at certain times of the week local bands, you could compare it to the Jordaan in Amsterdam. A down to earth area lived in by the locals with great pubs and local music.
What can you expect?
- Street food galore
- A street lined with food stalls
- Food prepared by local restaurants, local residents and non-food shop owners
- Craft Fairs
- Food market in Gwydir street
- After Fair parties in the local pubs ( updates on this soon to come)
- Historic Walks
- The Mill Road Winter Fair parade
- Chinese snake dances
- Morris dancers
- Shop till you drop at local shops and spice shops
- Quite a few more activities, which we will list before the event
Watch this space as I will be sharing updates with you on a weekly basis.
Keen to make most out of your day? The Fair officially opens at 10.30am with a ceremony in Ditchburn Gardens
Gerla
We are the local experts in creating unique food tours and events with an in-depth knowledge of the local Cambridge food scene and close partnerships with local businesses.
