The Cheshire Food Festival at Arley Hall & Gardens, Northwich

Later this month, the Cheshire Food Festival returns at the beautiful Arley Hall & Gardens (pictured), near Northwich. This weekend event will feature 80 local vendors offering food, ale and wine. It’s not only food and drink either: there will also be stalls with gifts and homemade crafts. Visitors will be able to pick up cooking tips from chefs who will be giving demonstrations, while a Man vs Food challenge will see brave men (and possibly women) face off in an eating contest. Past challenges have included eating a foot-long chilli hotdog followed by some palette-cleansing chilli sorbet. There is also a Cake Off, which hopefully won’t be as controversial as the recent BBC contest. The event is family-friendly, with fairground rides, activities and even cookery lessons for children. Arley Hall is around an hour from Manchester city centre, by car or public transport.

Sat 20 – Sun 21 Sep, Arley Hall & Gardens, Northwich, Cheshire, CW9 6NA, 10am – 5.30pm, £6.50 (under-fives are free), www.cheshirefoodfestival.com