Big names on Noosa Food and Wine Festival program

NEXT year's Noosa Food and Wine Festival program has been released and it is packed with surprises for avid foodies.

Festival director Sheridah Puttick said more than 30 local restaurants were involved and many new elements had been introduced for 2019.

"The 2019 program will feature a variety of new experiences, including hinterland events that will take festival-goers out and about beyond the beach exploring some of the great farms within the Noosa and Gympie regions,” Ms Puttick said.

"The festival for us is about bringing people together that are passionate about food and working together with our community of local chefs, restaurants, producers and national partners to celebrate the best of our region and current trends in Australia right now.”

Next year's festival, from May 16-20, will include beachfront brunches, dinners with celebrity chefs, live cooking demonstrations, the cool vibes of the Festival Village, hinterland trail experiences, a party under the stars and much more.

Visiting chefs include Neil Perry from Sydney's Rockpool restaurant, My Kitchen Rules judges Manu Feildel and Colin Fassnidge, Alla Wolf-Tasker from the Lake House in Daylesford, Victoria, and TV personality Matt Moran.

Program highlights include:

Festival Opening Party

Join Italian aficionados and Noosa Waterfront Restaurant for the Festival Opening Party on Noosa Main Beach for two hours of Italian style - Ferrari Trento Sparkling, fresh local seafood, signature canapés and a grazing table filled to the brim with cheese and salumi.

Blush and Bubbles

A blushing line-up of rosé, champagne over ice, prawns, salmon, bruschetta, berries and all things pink to kickstart the day.

Club Crusoe

For one night only, Rococo Bistro Noosa is bringing a Kakadu meets Cafe del Mar meets isles of the South Pacific beach party to the shores of Laguna Bay.

There'll be DJs and live music, dancing, sublime food, plentiful drink and of course, coconuts.

Well Nourished

Ease into Sunday with Noosa's Belmondos Organic Market on the beach. Ground your feet in the sand, breathe in the crisp Noosa air and explore a world of wellness. Think: organic, ethical produce, seasonal food, locally roasted coffee and cold pressed juices.

Beach Sundowner

The Closing Party is a beach barbecue bringing together some of Australia's best produce.

Modern Australia

Learn from the world's most ancient culture as you forage and dine with a new wave of modern food pioneers - Harvest Newrybar's head chef Alastair Waddell, resident forager and pioneer of the Australian bushfood industry Peter Hardwick, Jaaning Tree's Clayton Donovan and Orana's Jock Zonfrillo.

Curated in collaboration with Wasabi Noosa and supported by local producers and growers, this new addition to Noosa Food and Wine Festival is one not to be missed.

The Underground Collective

Join The Underground Collective for a truly intimate and immersive experience of gastronomic discovery, alongside nationally acclaimed Alla Wolf-Tasker, Scott Pickett, Matt Moran and Zeb Gilbert.

Focusing on seasonal, small scale producers, this progressive lunch will highlight root vegetables and ingredients from the earth in season.

Curated in collaboration with Wasabi Noosa, Alla, Scott, Matt and Zeb will share their love and admiration for great producers both local and across Australia, with plenty of shared feasting and conversations, MC hosted Q&As as well as captivating book readings and stories from the chefs.

Under the Stars

Join local farmers under the stars for a four-course dinner in the rolling hills of the Noosa countryside.

Produced and prepared by locals using ingredients sourced from the Mary Valley, Gympie and Noosa; celebrate the flavours of the surrounding area accompanied by matched wines from nearby Dingo Creek.

The night sky will be introduced by Wappa Falls Observatory, including a presentation, displays and an opportunity to gaze at the stars through high powered telescopes.

Enjoy this magical dinner under the stars and extend your visit with overnight accommodation at Amamoor Lodge.

Throughout the festival there will be a range of great culinary collaborations, with visiting chefs taking to the kitchens of some of Noosa's best restaurants.

Grazie - Food with Gratitude

Food Fighter champion Ronni Kahn (OzHarvest) will be at Locale for Grazie - Food with Gratitude, sharing the appreciation of the entire ingredient and celebrating the end to end food cycle with gratitude.

With an exciting menu designed and prepared by Giovanni Pilu, Alessandro Pavoni and Andy Davies, the dinner will creatively explore sustainable and ethically sourced ingredients in a respectful and delicious way.

Dinner with Friends

Join Matt Golinski and close friends Alastair McLeod, Glen Barrett and Manu Feildel, for a four-course journey celebrating local produce, incredible wine and friendship! Matt, Alastair, Manu and Glen will demonstrate their talents whilst sharing their stories and food passions.

Neil Perry's Blue Water Grill

Neil Perry rewrote the blueprint for what a seafood restaurant should be with his 1986 restaurant Blue Water Grill in Bondi. For one lunch only, Neil will return to Noosa to collaborate with old friends Katrina Ryan, Peter Kuruvita and Andy Davies to showcase a retrospective of the restaurants great dishes.

Participating restaurants include:

Arcuri Restaurant

Aromas Noosa

Belmondos Organic Market

Bistro C

Boardwalk Bistro on Hastings

Bombetta

Café Le Monde

El Capitano

Embassy XO

Locale Noosa

Makepeace Island