Eat the Streets!

Chef Lucas de Medeiros Matile of Mister S, infuses the rich flavors of Irish produce with vibrant Latin influences, creating dishes that are both exciting and innovative. With a passion for culinary creativity, Chef Lucas crafts memorable dining experiences that celebrate the best of both worlds. The first cook a long of the day is not to be missed!

Join us for a chat about the journey of moving from a sense of impossibility to realising the immense power held in our hands to take action, everyday. We can all do our bit with simple lifestyle changes from not wasting food to eating local and in season foods. These simple changes when nurtured grow and become a biodiverse garden of actions, that inspire others to join a movement and suddenly the impossible is possible.

Guests are:

• Joan Culligan, Retired Home Economics teacher and member of Thorndale Residents Association: Born on a farm where Joan developed a love of food and the land. Joan's love for cooking was inspired by her grandmother who lived with them. She worked in a north city all girls secondary school for 35 years where she taught home economics and co ordinated transition year. When she retired she got involved with her local community to develop the green area near their houses.

• Garrette Clarke, Sustainable Lifestyles Programme Officer with the United Nations Environment Programme: Garrette is the Sustainable Lifestyles Programme Officer, in the Industry and Economy Division of the UN Environment Programme in Paris. With a sustainability career spanning over 30 years, her expertise lies in promoting how we can live better and lighter. Technically referred to as ‘sustainable consumption and production,’ her team runs research on sustainable living, develops methodologies to support disruptive change and engages partners, including new wild cards like, youth activists, social media platforms and cultural influencers. She has a Master’s degree from Goldman School of Public Policy (University of California, Berkeley) and a BA in Medieval History from Smith College (United States).

• Catherine Cleary, Irish Times Food Writer, and Co Founder of Pocket Forests: Catherine is an award-winning journalist, author and nature activist. In 2020 with co-founder Ashe Conrad-Jones they set up Pocket Forests, a Dublin-based social enterprise helping communities create space for nature in urban areas. She is the author and co-author of four books. She spent more than a decade writing about food for The Irish Times and has hosted several podcasts. Last year she planted more than 6,000 trees to establish a native woodlands and wilding project of over 24,000 native trees in Co Roscommon.

• Angela Ruttledge, Head of Public Engagement with FoodCloud: Angela is a solicitor with a background in financial, corporate, and commercial law. She served on the council of the Restaurants Association of Ireland and is a member of the board of Fáilte Ireland. Angela ran a restaurant group for 12 years and before joining FoodCloud she co-founded Vytal Ireland, the country's first digital platform for reusable packaging. Angela is an Eisenhower Fellow (Global Leadership Programme 2023) and occasionally writes for The Irish Times.

Chef Erica Drum is thrilled to bring you two delicious and comforting seasonal soups, paired with freshly baked brown bread, all made with the best of Irish ingredients. Erica's cooking is vibrant and full of flavor, with a strong emphasis on sustainability, seasonality, and local produce. She will guide you through the steps to create two hearty soups that highlight the freshness of the season, perfect for warming up on cooler days. Alongside, she’ll show you how to bake a traditional Irish brown bread that complements the soups perfectly. Join us to learn how to make these nourishing dishes and pick up some expert tips along the way.

Join us for a conversation with young people, hosted by Evie Kenny of RTE's Ecolution on Nourishing a Healthy Planet for the Future.

What are young people's experiences of the food system and their vision for the future.

In this Middle Eastern cooking demonstration, Katie Quinn of Lilliput Stores and her dad Chef Michael Quinn, team up to bring the rich, aromatic flavors of the middle east to the eat the streets festival.

Together, they prepare a vibrant array of dishes, from baked falafel to a vibrant tabbouleh. All recipes that they have picked up from friends and colleagues that hail from different corners of the Levant.

The demonstration is not just about cooking; it’s a celebration of family and the joy of sharing meals with loved ones.

Over the last year Dublin City has seen the closure of restaurants that have been the cornerstones of city’s vibrant food scene. Now more than ever, it is important that we have a conversation about feeding our city. We all need to eat; vitally we need to eat healthy food. How do we a grow a healthy food sector when climate change creates precarious growing conditions here and beyond, when conflict and politics cut off supply chains and all compounding by an affordability crisis. How does the Irish food system adapt to be resilient and be the solution for a just transition?

Guests are:

• James Burke, Dublin Food Chain: James started his food and retail career working part-time in Supervalu Bantry. He subsequently studied Retailed Management in DIT and joined Superquinn in 1984. He spent over 20 years in Superquinn, the last 10 of which were at Board Room Level. His Superquinn executive roles included Business Development Manager, Group Purchasing Manager and Trading Manager. In addition James served on the advisory board of AMS €1 billion European buying group and was a director of the Irish Purchasing Company Aontas. He holds a degree in retailing and wholesaling from Stirling University in Scotland

• Aisling Rogerson, The Fumbally:

• Emer McGrath, Spade Enterprise Centre: Emer is the Community Development Manager at SPADE Shared Kitchen. She became obsessed with food and cooking from a young age, which led her to build a career based around all things food! Her roles have included Fresh Food Operations Manager, speciality food retail, sourcing, procurement, catering and kitchen management. She has worked with a variety of food businesses to review and develop particular aspects of their company and has a particular love of working with Irish producers and suppliers.

• Iain Connolly, Croga:

• Samantha Forrest, Fussy Food Plates: Samantha, founder of Fussy Food Plates, a Dublin-based business that is transforming mealtimes for families. A passionate advocate for creating inclusive, fun, and engaging dining experiences, Samantha has made it her mission to support children, including those who have sensory challenges, in developing positive relationships with food. As a mother of three and a qualified nutrition coach, her expertise and innovative products have help families by making mealtimes both stress-free and enjoyable. Today, she joins us to share her insights on making food fun & tackling fussy eating at home.