GRILL smoke, live music and beer on tap brought a bank holiday vibe to Darlington town centre over the weekend.
The annual Food and Drink Festival returned to the Market Square across the three-day May Day weekend and the favourable weather brought the crowds out in their droves.
Many traders reported a bumper weekend as visitors were treated to an array of food and drink stalls selling Geordie Bangers to Asian cuisine and everything in between.
And it wasn't just visitors of the two-legged variety who enjoyed the tasty treats on offer as Tanya Davison of Evie's Pupcakes handmade dog treats said she sold two days worth of stock in one afternoon.
She said: "It's a well-attended event, a great location and Saturday was really busy.
"There's a good variety of stalls and a nice party atmosphere."
For Alicia Wood it was the first time she had attended the festival having only moved to Darlington from Canada in February.
She said: "I thought I would come down and have a look and it seems like good fun.
"Obviously it is my first time here and I haven't been here long but I had a lovely haloumi wrap and bought a spinach and feta wrap and some baclava for later which looks amazing."
Darlington couple Kim and Paul Dawes said they had been to previous food festivals but this year they came without their children and joked they were enjoying sampling the cocktails on offer for a change.
Kim said: "There is a lot of choice of stalls, you're not queuing for too long and there is a really nice atmosphere."
Paul added: "We haven't actually had any of the food yet but we will definitely be sampling a lot of it later on.
"My only complaint is that I couldn't find a Pina Colada anywhere!"
Maria Zaimaki who runs Deli-cious, selling Greek coffee, cakes and treats, said the weekend had gone really well for her team.
"It is our first time here so we can't compare it to previous years but we have been busy," she said.
While Nina Welton of Brown and Blond brownie makers praised the 'really good atmosphere' created by the live music and entertainers - including musicians on stilts whom she said were her favourite.
"We've got quite a good following in the North East so it is good every time we come here," said Nina, who also took her stall to the Bishop Auckland Food Festival last weekend.
"We have been coming here for seven or eight years, but obviously there was the Covid gap, so it's really nice to be back."
The Food and Drink Festival is running across the whole three-day bank holiday weekend in Darlington Market Square, indoor market and surrounding area from 10am to 6pm and features more than 40 stalls.
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