The Game Fair: What To Eat & Drink At The Country Festival

Offering everything from falconry to clay pigeon shooting and fishing, The Game Fair is the ultimate festival for lovers of country pursuits. But foodies will also find much to be excited about. As the name suggests, the event spotlights game meat, although there’s a wide array of food on offer – from street food stalls to more formal dining experiences in the VIP Enclosure. The fair returns to Ragley Hall in Warwickshire from 24 – 26 July 2026, and we’ve got all the culinary highlights below.

The Game Fair Food Guide 2026

What Is The Game Fair?

The concept for The Game Fair dates back over 60 years, tracing back to a man named Nigel Gray, who set out to create an event to bring together landowners and gamekeepers to discuss game shooting. He suggested the idea to Charles Coles – soon to become the director of the Game Conservancy, now the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust. The trial event took place in 1958 at Hall Farm in Newmarket, and was a big success, attracting 8,500 visitors. 

Over the coming years, the fair continued to gain traction, even securing its first royal visit in 1974, when the late Queen made an appearance, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh. It grew to become not just about game, but a wider celebration of the British countryside, featuring everything from sports to dog shows to crafts, plus live music and talks on food, farming and sustainability.

Ragley Hall

What To Eat & Drink

Chef Demonstrations

A line-up of game chefs will be attending the festival, giving live cookery demonstrations at the BASC Wild Food Kitchen Theatre. Marco Pierre White will be cooking a risotto and rabbit offal dish, Callum Leslie (the Eat Game Chef Of The Year) will host a masterclass demonstrating how to cook Yorkshire hare with fermented celeriac. Elsewhere Chris Marney will be focusing on venison, Jose Souto will run a taste tour of Britain’s wild deer, and much more.

Farm Shop Produce 

Love a good farm shop haul? Head to Totally Food, an emporium of fresh produce from small producers featuring everything from specialty cheese to bread to cakes – plus plenty of game and venison, of course. There will be lots of opportunities to try before you buy too, particularly at the Great Taste Market.

Cocktails

Who better to mix you up a cocktail than Merlin Griffiths, the beloved bartender from Channel 4’s First Dates? He’ll be returning to The Game Fair’s VIP Enclosure to mix up two cocktails made specifically for the event. First up is the Lemony Snicket, made with lemon verbena gin, sweet herbal vermouth and a hint of elderflower, alongside the Morello Negroni, which adds cherry liqueur to the classic drink.

Street Food

A variety of street food stalls will be dotted across the festival. At the Gunmakers’ Arms & Grub, located next to Gunmakers’ Row, this year’s line-up includes Gamekeeper, London’s only venison burger street food brand, pizza favourite Made of Dough, and Urban Spice Box, which serves rice and curry boxes as well as filled sourdough naans. 

Dog & Duck, meanwhile, found beside the Dog Agility Ring, will offer smoked meats from Oink BBQ, cult burgers from Nanny Bill’s, and pitta wraps from Smashing Plates. And at Hare & Hound, there’s duck rotisserie, loaded fries from Hey Spud!, bao buns from YouBao and hot dogs from Burnout BBQ.

 

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VIP Dining

Lucky VIPs will get the chance to enjoy food from Marco Pierre White. The menu will spotlight local ingredients grown near Ragley Hall, with both breakfast and lunch dishes on offer. In the morning, there’s Mr White’s Breakfast: think bacon, mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, eggs and more.

Come lunchtime, enjoy starters of venison arancini ahead of mains like spatchcock chicken served with crispy potatoes or roasted lamb with hasselback summer squash followed by desserts including sticky date pudding and white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake. The summer deli station, meanwhile, includes a mix of vibrant salads.

Find out more and book at thegamefair.org. Use the discount code House20 for 20 percent off tickets.