Park Food Fest in Novigrad 2026: Istrian gastronomy, wine and craft beer by the sea
Park Food Fest, a two-day street food festival dedicated to Istrian gastronomy, wines and craft beer, will be held in Novigrad from Friday, May 22 to Saturday, May 23, 2026. According to the current announcement by the organizers and the calendar of the Tourist Board of Istria County, the program is planned for the area of the Mandrač harbor and the Park of Novigrad Fishermen, from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. It is an event that connects restaurants, local producers, chefs, winemakers and brewers with an audience that, in the relaxed atmosphere of the old-town harbor, can taste more contemporary interpretations of Istrian dishes. The event has profiled itself as an open-air gastronomic gathering, with dishes served in a format suitable for tasting “on the go”, but with an emphasis on the quality of ingredients and the recognizability of northwestern Istria.
A festival at the meeting point of the old-town harbor and the park
The center of the event will be Mandrač, one of Novigrad’s recognizable seaside locations, and the nearby Park of Novigrad Fishermen. Such a layout gives the festival a distinctly open, promenade-like character: gastronomic points, drinks, music and the accompanying program are connected by the seaside space, where the festival is experienced not only as a classic hospitality offer, but also as part of Novigrad’s urban rhythm. According to the published information, Park Food Fest is designed as a meeting of Istrian cuisine, wine and craft beer in an environment that relies on the local identity of the town and its harbor views. For visitors coming from outside the event location, the possibility of checking
accommodation in Novigrad near Mandrač is also practical, especially because the program is held over two days and lasts until the evening hours.
What the gastronomic program brings
The focus of the festival will be dishes of Istrian cuisine prepared in street food form. The event announcement points out that popular restaurants from Novigrad and other parts of northwestern Istria will present themselves, with creative dishes made from local and seasonal ingredients. An offer is expected in which fish, seafood, meat, pasta and seasonal fruits of “green Istria” meet, which means that the festival does not rest on just one type of cuisine, but tries to show a broader gastronomic cross-section of the region. The special feature of the concept is that traditional flavors are not offered only in classic restaurant form, but in more practical, smaller and more quickly available portions, without giving up culinary execution.
Such a format suits contemporary gastronomic events well because it allows tasting several dishes in one visit. Instead of a formal sequence of courses, Park Food Fest encourages visiting different exhibitors and comparing authorial approaches to local ingredients. Chefs can thereby present dishes that rely on Istrian tradition, but adapt them to the festival dynamics, the open space and the audience moving between stands, the music program and the seaside promenade. This shifts the emphasis from the mere serving of food to the experience of tasting, conversation and getting to know the local gastro scene.
Wines of northwestern Istria and craft beer as an important part of the offer
Along with food, an offer of white and red wines from northwestern Istria has also been announced, as well as domestic craft beers. This part of the program is important because the festival presents gastronomy not only through dishes, but also through drinks that have a strong regional identity in Istria. Northwestern Istria is known for its wine tradition, and events of this type often serve as a meeting place for producers and the wider audience, without the formalities of wine fairs or guided tastings. In a festival environment, wine is connected with specific dishes, the local ambience and informal socializing, which further strengthens the recognizability of the destination as an area of gastronomic tourism.
Craft beer in the program gives the festival additional breadth, especially for visitors who expect a more diverse drinks offer alongside street food. In combination with dishes made from fish, meat, pasta and seasonal vegetables, beer and wine create the possibility of different pairings, without a strictly set tasting protocol. From an organizational point of view, such an approach gives Park Food Fest flexibility: the festival can attract an audience that comes specifically for the food, but also those who experience the event as an evening outing, seaside socializing or part of a broader stay in the town. That is why, for a multi-day arrival, checking the
accommodation offer for Park Food Fest visitors also becomes especially relevant.
Show cooking as a link between tradition and contemporary cuisine
One of the highlighted elements of the program will be show cooking, in which Novigrad chefs and restaurant owners from northwestern Istria will demonstrate the preparation of Istrian specialties. According to the announcement, the aim is to show the skills of preparing dishes with ingredients typical of the region and the season. Such a format has additional value because it does not reduce food only to the finished plate: the process opens up in front of the audience, techniques are explained, as are the choice of ingredients and the way traditional cuisine can be interpreted in a contemporary gastronomic language.
Show cooking is especially important in the context of regional festivals because it brings the audience closer to the people behind the menus. In such an environment, chefs do not appear only as authors of dishes, but also as interpreters of local culinary heritage. If seasonal fish, homemade pasta, wild herbs, meat or vegetables from the Istrian hinterland are used, the demonstration can show how ordinary local ingredients are transformed into a dish that suits today’s way of consumption. It is precisely this combination of tradition and modern approach that is one of the key reasons why Park Food Fest differs from the usual open-air food offer.
Novigrad as the backdrop of a gastronomic event
Novigrad, or Novigrad-Cittanova, is not merely an administrative location in this event, but an important part of the festival experience. The program takes place in the old-town harbor and the park, that is, in a space that naturally connects the sea, walking, gastronomy and the evening social rhythm. For coastal towns, events of this type have a dual role: they enrich the event calendar outside the very peak of the summer season and additionally highlight local hospitality businesses, producers and tourism assets. In May, when the tourist season gradually intensifies, an event dedicated to food and drink can be a strong motive for arrival, especially for an audience looking for a shorter gastronomic trip or an extended stay by the sea.
Mandrač and the Park of Novigrad Fishermen thereby give the festival clear spatial recognizability. It is an environment that allows the program to take place without a closed festival frame, in contact with the town and the sea. Such an open character is especially important for the street food format because it encourages movement, lingering and spontaneous participation in the program. Since the festival is held on Friday and Saturday, for some visitors the arrival may also include an overnight stay, so it is useful to look in advance at
accommodation in Novigrad for the event weekend.
Program for families and the youngest visitors
Park Food Fest has not been announced exclusively as an event for food and wine lovers. The organizers also highlight a program for the youngest visitors, which will take place in the afternoon hours in the Park of Novigrad Fishermen. The announcement mentions children’s performances and workshops, which gives the festival a family character and broadens its audience beyond the typical gastronomic circle. The park space is important precisely for such a program because it provides a safer and more relaxed environment for children, while the main gastronomic part takes place in the immediate vicinity.
The family component is also important for the overall profile of the event. Gastro festivals that include a children’s program develop more easily as all-day events, and not only as evening outings. Visitors can come for a later lunch, stay in the town until evening, walk by the sea and take part in different parts of the program. This increases the time spent at the location, but also the possibility of connecting the event with additional content in the town. In practical terms, families planning to stay for both festival days can consider
accommodation near the Park of Novigrad Fishermen to make movement between the program and rest easier.
Music and atmosphere as part of the festival identity
Along with food, wine and beer, musical entertainment and a cheerful atmosphere during the day and evening have been announced. Such an element is not secondary, because street food events succeed precisely when the gastronomic offer is connected with a social experience. Music creates the rhythm of the stay at the location, extends the time spent there and turns the festival into a meeting place, and not only into a series of sales points. In Novigrad, where the program takes place by the sea, this effect is further strengthened by the ambience of the harbor and the park.
According to the event description, the festival wants to bring together hosts and guests from different areas, in a relaxed atmosphere that stretches from daytime hours to the evening. This means that Park Food Fest can be experienced in several ways: as an open-air lunch, as an evening tasting of Istrian dishes, as a family outing or as a gastronomic stop as part of a stay in northwestern Istria. It is precisely this multilayered nature that contributes to its appeal, because the program is not tied only to one time slot, one audience profile or one type of offer.
Why this kind of festival matters for local gastronomy
Events such as Park Food Fest are important for local gastronomy because they create visibility for restaurants and producers that otherwise operate in a competitive tourist space. Restaurants from Novigrad and northwestern Istria get the opportunity to present themselves outside their own premises, in direct contact with an audience that might not reach each individual restaurant during a short stay. On the other hand, visitors get an overview of different styles, ingredients and culinary ideas in a short time. Such a meeting can also be important for later decisions about visiting restaurants, wineries or other local content.
For the tourism image of the destination, it is especially important that the festival emphasizes local ingredients and seasonality. In contemporary tourism, gastronomy is increasingly a reason for travel, and not only an addition to accommodation and vacation. When an event is based on fish, seafood, pasta, meat, seasonal produce and local wines, it simultaneously promotes the area from which these ingredients come. Park Food Fest thus functions as a showcase of northwestern Istria: not through a formal presentation, but through food, aromas, conversation with hospitality professionals and the atmosphere by the sea.
Practical information about the event
According to current announcements, Park Food Fest is held on May 22 and 23, 2026 in Novigrad, at the location of Mandrač and the Park of Novigrad Fishermen. The event time is listed as from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. The event is described in official tourism calendars as a gastronomic and enological event, and organizationally it is connected with the Tourist Board of Novigrad-Cittanova and the tourism platform Colours of Istria. Since program adjustments are possible at open-air events, especially in the event of weather conditions or organizational changes, it is advisable to check the latest announcements by the organizers before arrival.
For visiting the festival, it is especially useful to plan the arrival so that enough time is left for visiting several exhibitors. The program lasts seven hours a day, which allows arrival for a later lunch, an early dinner or evening socializing. Since the festival takes place in the old-town zone and by the sea, the biggest crowd is expected in the later afternoon and evening hours, when the gastronomic offer naturally merges with music and walking. For those planning to stay the whole weekend,
accommodation in Novigrad during Park Food Fest can be an important part of travel organization.
A festival that connects the plate, the sea and the local scene
Park Food Fest in May 2026 brings Novigrad another edition of an event that presents gastronomy not only as a hospitality offer, but as part of the identity of the place. Food, wine, craft beer, show cooking, music and the children’s program create a format in which local tradition and a contemporary festival approach complement each other. The announced program confirms that this is an event aimed at a broad audience: lovers of Istrian flavors, families, visitors looking for a relaxed weekend by the sea and everyone who wants to get to know northwestern Istria through its cuisine. In the ambience of Mandrač and the Park of Novigrad Fishermen, the festival relies on what Novigrad already has: the sea, the old-town atmosphere, the restaurant scene and the recognizable flavors of the region.
Sources:- Colours of Istria – official announcement of the Park Food Fest event with dates, location, event time and program description (link)- Tourist Board of Istria County – calendar of events in Istria with information about Park Food Fest 2026 in Novigrad (link)- City of Novigrad-Cittanova – official city information about an earlier edition of Park Food Fest and the event organizer (link)- Association of Winemakers Novigrad-Cittanova – description of the Park Food Fest concept as a wine-gastronomic event by Mandrač and the Park of Novigrad Fishermen (link)
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