Good food, good wine and good company in the guise of the Longest Lunch and Feast Port Douglas will launch Port Douglas Carnivale’s 21st year festivities this weekend amid the relaxed, outdoor ambience and natural beauty for which the town is famous.
The two popular high points of Carnivale are proudly presented this year Roux Blond Catering and Events in the palm-fringed Rex Smeal Park against a glittering Coral Sea backdrop.
The Jansz Longest Lunch is a “must” on the Carnivale program. Known for its sense of luxury, exclusivity and indulgence, this event aesthetic is the perfect partnership for Jansz Tasmania, the most highly regarded sparkling wine house in Australia.
Roux Blond Director Darren Garner said guests would be blown away with the reinvigorated event, that will see them sit back and enjoy a tantalising shared table banquet featuring menu items such as 18 hour wood smoked beef brisket, and roast barramundi with warm pea salad, seared scallops and prawns.
“We want people to settle in for the afternoon with great food, great wines and great company – the perfect way to start the 2015 Carnivale celebrations,” he said.
The Jansz Longest Lunch will be a four-hour hedonistic delight, stretching from 11.30am until 3.30pm on Friday, May 22.
Wines will include Jansz Tasmania premium cuvee and rose, Hill-Smith Estate sauvignon blanc, Haha Marlborough pinot noir and LaVielle Ferme Cotes du Ventoux rose.
Entertainment will be by local jazz/blues/country band Montgomery Brothers and Tiffany Smith. Tickets cost $165 per person.
Feast Port Douglas will take over the space the following evening, May 23, from 5.30pm till 11pm.
Port Douglas Carnivale general manager Roy Weavers said while Feast was more casual, it was set to be the flagship celebration of food and wine in the Carnivale calendar.
Multiple dining areas and styles will be available to Feast visitors around the festival grounds, while local musicians Tectonic Big Band provide entertainment.
Tickets to Feast Port Douglas cost $45 per person. Festival tokens will be used as currency. They will be available from a number of stalls to redeem for all food and beverage within the festival. Unused tokens can be refunded prior to departure, or donated to a charity on exit.
Mr Weavers said the opening weekend of Carnivale was always a highlight for visitors, with the Longest Lunch setting the tone for the pleasures to come.
After lunch, all the action can be found in town with the street parade festivities kicking off in Market Park from 5pm. The colourful 21st street parade commences at 6.30pm with a line-up of entries vying for Best Overall Float prize of $1000.
This year’s parade will feature international competitors from the Yabusame horseback archery tournament, minus their horses, but accompanied by the dramatic ancient Japanese percussive Taiko big drums. Explosive art will dim the stars when $6000 worth of fireworks are set off from 8pm.
A full program of old-fashioned family fun is scheduled for Saturday, May 23, at the The Four Mile Family Beach Day. There will be a Kids’ Fun Zone, beach and water activities, the McDonalds Major Stage Show, a helicopter lolly drop, sky-diving displays, the famous Yabusame horseback archery tournament, a medieval jousting competition and sandcastle and tug-o-war competitions.
The fun moves to the Reef Marina on Sunday, May 24, with the Carnivale Backyard Games and the hilarious World Racing Motorised Cooler (Esky) Championships.
The famous Port Douglas markets will be in full swing at Market Park while the action continues on the water with the colourful start of the Mickey Ink Port Douglas Race Week, with four divisions competing, including racing and cruising yachts.
Mr Weavers said the celebrations would continue every day of the 10-day Carnivale program.
Highlights included the Carnivale Two Day Golf Competition, Street Art and Music Festival, the glamorous Modele 15 fashion event, Avenue of the Arts, performances at the Clink Theatre by Carlotta, and by Toby Short in Tesla, the new, two-day Radiant Life Festival at the Sugar Wharf, the Big Laugh on Friday, May 29, the Domaine Chandon Carnivale Lunch, and the Preston Fresh Seafood Extravaganza at the Reef Marina on Sunday, May 31.
For tickets to the various events and more information on the Carnivale program, visit www.carnivale.com.au.
ENDS
Interviews:
Roy Weavers, General Manager Port Douglas Carnivale 2015
Mob: 0437 549 110
Publicity: Tanya Snelling, Strategic PR, 0417 202 663
