If you're of a certain age and went to school in or around Melbourne, you're probably all too familiar with Sovereign Hill — the gold rush-museum-meets-miniature-town that was the excursion spot of choice in the 90s and early 2000s. Well, fast-forward to the current day and the precinct is set to show off a much cooler, foodier side when it hosts the Heritage Harvest Weekend from Saturday, May 25–Sunday, May 26. The food festival will take you on a time-tripping celebration of sustainable cooking practices like fermenting, pickling and curing through a program of events headlined by some legendary Aussie chefs. Free interactive cooking demos will be run by Masterchef's Julie Goodwin and Tim Bone as well as Bake Off's Darren Purchese. A handful of cooking and craft sessions will also be hosted by the legendary Country Women's Association. Food producers and local artisans will set up stalls within the old-timey town where kids can also learn traditional crafts and join a bunch of activities. Visitors who purchase a standard Sovereign Hill ticket will get access to all of the Heritage Festival events, so you can do a spot of shopping, listen to some live music, have a good feed and then go pan for gold at the river. How wholesome?
