Queen Vic Market launches first autumn festival with new seasonal series

Queen Victoria Market will launch its first-ever autumn event later this month, with a one-day Flavours of Autumn Festival set to celebrate the harvest season through food, drink and live entertainment.

To be held on Saturday, March 21, the new festival will take over the market’s C Shed and headline the launch of the market’s broader Autumn Series, a program of festivals, tours, craft markets and cultural events running from March to May.

Market organisers say the event will showcase some of autumn’s standout produce, with traders and guest food stalls turning seasonal ingredients such as mushrooms, apples, pears and slow-roasted root vegetables into street food dishes and sweet treats.

Among the highlights are pumpkin arepas from Colombiantojos, a trio-mushroom toastie from Mr Baller, cinnamon sugar pretzel donuts from Kaiser’s Pretzels, Korean coin pancakes with pear and apple jam from Lucky Coin, and seasonal desserts from GLO Gelato. Visitors will also be able to enjoy live music and a pop-up bar serving warming drinks including a Fig and Thyme Gin Fizz and Sparkling Mandarin Sunset.

The event marks a new seasonal offering for the historic market, which is also promoting autumn produce across its fresh food sheds, from pumpkins, chestnuts and figs to roasting meats and pantry staples suited to cooler weather cooking. Retail traders will also reflect the seasonal shift, with trans-seasonal fashion, homewares and locally made goods on offer.

The Flavours of Autumn Festival is free to attend and will run from 9am to 4pm. It will be followed by a string of other Autumn Series events, including an Indonesian Festival, Turkish Pazar, Latin market, CRFT*WRK maker events and a trading cards and fandom swap meet.

For Queen Victoria Market, the new program is designed to position autumn as one of the market’s most vibrant and flavour-filled times of year.