It’s spectacular! Cheese Feast takes over Reading’s Blue Collar Corner for 4-day Easter celebration

Some of the biggest names in cheese have visited Reading this Easter as the town flocked to Blue Collar Corner for its annual Cheese Feast. 

The four-day Cheese Feast event held at the town centre venue saw a smorgasbord of cheese themed food shacks from across the country set up in Hosier Street and in the venue itself. 

Stalls offered customers the opportunity to try something different from melted raclette Cheese on skin-on fries to authentic Philly Cheesesteaks. 

The Cheese Wheel team switched from Camden Market to the Ding as they made a welcome return to Blue Collar. Its menu included Fettuccine in a creamy white wine sauce with toppings including Black Truffle Sauce, Mushroom Sauté, and Slow Cooked Beef.

The Halloumi Fries came from Manchester. Customers could add a range of seasonings and sauces to their dish, including Peri-Peri Mayonnaise, Sweet Chilli Sauce, Hoisin Sauce, Garlic Mayo with a lime wedge, and Yoghurt and Mint Sauce with cucumber.

Food shacks who have a residency also took part with The Burger Society offering a one-off special with a distinctively cheesy flavour, while Gurts Wings continued to tempt people with its regular menu.

For those who wanted to take something home, they could enjoy cheeses from The Marlow Cheese Company. The only cheesemaker in Buckinghamshire, they make their artisan cheeses from locally sourced milk and they aim to support their community.

Traders at Cheese Feast include some newcomers and some returning favourites:

• The Cheese Wheel
• The Raclette Truck
• Halloumination
• MacMan Mac & Cheese
• The Griddle Guys
• Mr Pigstuff Quesidillas
• Sweet Lord Cheesus
• Gurt Wings
• The Burger Society
• The Marlow Cheese Company

Residents The Burger Society are promising a real special for Cheese Feast: The Mount Cheesemore.

They describe it as a 40 day aged patty topped with red Leicester, Emmental, parmesan crisp, caramelised onions, pickles & sweet chilli sauce. Served in a chilli cheese bun and with extra cheese sauce for dipping.

With hundreds of people dropping in for Cheese Feast, some returning for a nightly fix of cheesy treats, DJs added the atmosphere, spinning a suitable selection of tracks, ensuring the atmosphere was relaxed. 

Blue Collar’s Glen Dinning was delighted with how the Cheese Feast weekend has been going, saying there had been a steady flow of visitors since it launched on Good Friday.

“Cheese Feast has always been good to us,” he said. “It started in 2018 with an incredible turnout, and every year people have come out in force. We’ve had rainy days, sunny days, and there has always been a really good turnout.

“I think people just love cheese and love coming out for it.”

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With this being a regular event, it should be no surprise that some of the biggest names in the cheese street food world have come to Reading to share their tasty treats.

“We’re getting really big names now, people like The Cheese Wheel that are coming from Camden Market. They came last year and had a brilliant reaction – they were really, really popular with the people of Reading, so they obviously wanted to come back,” Glen explained.

“The Halloumi Fries team have come from Manchester and they do really big festivals. They are the best at what they do. You can make that point for a lot of the food traders here, and I think it’s really encouraging that we are attracting really big names and the best food options to Reading.”

When Glen and the team set up Blue Collar, one of their visions was to see people of all ages come down and enjoy the food, be it cheese, burgers, or something completely different. As the food trucks regularly rotate, people will have the opportunity to try out new options on almost every visit. For those that like consistency, chicken from Gurt Wings and burgers from The Burger Society should hit the spot.

And the bar is well-stocked with beer brewed locally thanks to Double-Barrelled Brewery – Ding, Parva, and the Rivers Session IPA are all on tap.

Glen says: “When Blue Collar Corner came to fruition, a big focus for me was that it would be a place where you could go with the kids on a Saturday or Sunday daytime, and then go out in the evening with friends. Everyone can enjoy the drinks and street food.

“And if you just want a quiet pit on your own, you can do that as well.

“I’m really proud of the fact that we’re welcoming to everyone and it just works. We’ve got all these different age groups, all these different demographics, and this weekend is just one big celebration of cheese, of street food, of Reading, of beer … of everything.”

Where is Blue Collar and how do I find out more about Cheese Feast?

Blue Collar is open from 11am to 12.30am on Good Friday, Saturday, and Easter Sunday. It will open again at 11am on Easter Monday, but they will close at the earlier time of 8pm.

The street food venue is in Hosier Street, off St Mary’s Butts and behind Broad St Mall.

For more details, or to book a table, log on to: https://www.bluecollarstreetfood.co.uk/