A "taste from every place," is how Preston BIA president Shirley Bowman describes the Preston Food Crawl.
At least 14 restaurants have signed up for the foodie event of the year for King Street in Preston on July 12.
"There's something for everyone, there are many places now and it's very diverse," said Bowman.
From cafes to Nigerian restaurants, the food scene in Preston is growing and has hundreds of people coming to take over King Street to sample all of their favourite places.
Since 2021, the Preston Food Crawl has grown each year with the inaugural event only selling 9,000 tickets. In 2023, over 23,000 tickets were sold and 15 restaurants took part.
Ticket booklets come with 20 tickets each and are for sale at Bowman's Home Hardware.
"The first year was definitely a struggle for some, but now they have all of their samples planned out and can have hot tables inside, they are a lot more experienced," added Bowman.
Connor Blackmore, the owner of the Nook City Cafe has its grand opening two weeks before the kick-off of the Food Crawl, but this is not his first time cooking for the event.
Blackmore was the head chef at Sauce Boss back in 2021 when the Food Crawl was just being introduced to Preston.
"You learn a lot from those kinds of events, like portioning and making sure that stuff is ready to go at a high quality," he said. "This year we have apple crisp chili and bruschetta bites, so we're ready."
Bowman notes that the Nook is not the only restaurant getting its start right before the crawl, as Mo's Nigerian restaurant is still trying to get all of its permits approved before the big day.
"We don't know if they will be open just yet, but they will be included in any promotion that goes out," she said.
The diversity of restaurants and cultures in Preston continues to grow and has created a sense of pride for Bowman as Cambridge is starting to be recognized for its food and atmosphere.
"This is what's great about Cambridge and Preston, because we really come together as a community," she said. "You'll come out and see people you went to high school with and some new people that could turn into lifelong friends."
Details about each restaurant will be posted to the Discover Preston Facebook page.
