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Culinary festival in the heart of Kakadu

10 May 2018

Kakadu will become nature’s grandest outdoor kitchen when Australia’s premier Indigenous food festival, A Taste of Kakadu, returns from 18 to 27 May.
Serving up a menu of ancient cuisine with a modern twist, this year’s festival will see the region’s best Indigenous chefs showcasing their culinary creations at remarkable locations, all celebrating the traditional culture and breathtaking scenery of Kakadu National Park.
Over 10 days, visitors can embark on guided walks where superfoods and delicacies such as Kakadu plums can be enjoyed, dine on crocodile, fish and buffalo cooked in spectacular ground ovens, and glide along the famed barramundi-filled rivers while enjoying bush tucker-inspired canapes.
The huge week will kick off at Bowali Visitor Centre on Friday, 18 May from 5.30pm.
Following a welcome to country from the Mirarr clan, there will be the launch of the Man Me art exhibition which is a very special installation telling the story of traditional food collection in Kakadu.
There will also be a sensational musical guest to get the party started; multi award-winning Indigenous singer-songwriter Shellie Morris. 
Event-goers will also be able to grab a feed from a traditional ground oven or sample the wares of our Festival Hub food vendors.
After the opening, head back to town to kick on with Kakadu-inspired cocktails at the Mercure Kakadu Crocodile Hotel. This is a free event and no bookings are required.
Other highlights throughout A Taste of Kakadu include:  Dinner by Clayton: Enjoy a sumptuous four-course dinner created by TV personality and hatted Indigenous chef Clayton Donovan (Jaaning Tree and ABC TV’s Wild Kitchen).
Fervor: Held at a special location in Kakadu, this exclusive pop up dining experience takes diners on an unforgettable multi-course culinary experience in the heart of Kakadu.
Kakadu Kitchen bush tucker tasting walk: Visit the Patonga Homestead Aboriginal community with talented young chefs Ben Tyler and Kylie-Lee Bradford and discover the area’s plants and animals and their deep significance to Kakadu’s traditional owners.
Canape Cruise on Yellow Water Billabong: Join Indigiearth founder Sharon Winsor and chef Zach Green from Darwin pop-up Elijah’s Kitchen, on a culinary cruise along one of Kakadu’s most spectacular wetland ecosystems.
Kakadu National Park Tourism and Visitor Services Manager Leanne Paige said native food was becoming a feature of many of Australia’s best restaurants and A Taste of Kakadu is a wonderful way to experience bush tucker.
“A Taste of Kakadu takes you on a journey to sample the foods that have sustained the world’s oldest living culture for more than 65,000 years,” Ms Paige said.
“We’ve infused the festival program with the ways of Bininj and Munnguy. You can hear, see and taste how Traditional Owners have lived in Kakadu for more than a thousand generations and when it comes to eating authentic Australian cuisine it doesn’t get any better than that.”
For more information visit parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/taste/