Good Food Month is on its way back to Canberra, set to celebrate the very best of the ACT’s food and wine scene for the seventh year this month.

This year’s event will see homegrown talent team up with major culinary players from across the country with events to be held right across the month, including four feature events and a number of dining experiences.

Renowned chefs Alanna Sapwell of Esmay and Analiese Gregory will be jumping into the Bar Rochford kitchen on Sunday 28 March, for which general admission tickets have already sold out.

The Young Chefs Dinner will be held at the vegetarian Monster Kitchen and Bar on 29 March.

As well, Good Weekend‘s The Quiz trivia masters have teamed up with restaurant critics for a special edition quiz that will test your knowledge of all things food, over a special dinner at the Boat House with Rockpool’s Cory Costelloe on Tuesday 23 March.

Due to popular demand, another feature event has been added to the program, which will see Aubergine’s Ben Willis open his kitchen to Sixpenny’s Aaron Ward. The pair will deliver an evening of seven courses with matched wines on Monday 22 March.

Local brewers Capital Brewing Co. will be partnering with Good Food Month, alongside non-alcoholic beer, Heaps Normal – brewed by Canberrans – and Mr Black Spirits.

Head of Nine Food Events, Venessa Cowell, encouraged people to throw their support behind local venues after a difficult year for the industry, and not just those participating in Good Food Month.

“Together let’s throw our support behind the venues that we love and those we take for granted as being part of the fabric of Canberra, cafes and restaurants, special occasion or Friday night pizzeria / takeaway favourites.”

While the Good Food Month events will be a welcome to addition to the Capital’s culinary calendar, the Night Noodle Markets won’t be returning as part of this year’s Enlighten Festival, set to run from 26 February to 8 March. Nine Food Events pulled the pin on the popular event due to uncertainty around COVID-19 and large-scale events, but hopes to bring it back for 2022.

Instead, the ACT Government has announced ‘Enlighten Alley’ and the Benstpoke Beer Garden as food and drink options at the Enlighten Festival.

The full program of events and tickets are now available via goodfoodmonth.com. Tickets for the Sixpenny x Aubergine dinner will be released Wednesday 3 March.