So Frenchy So Chic 2024

Overview

Every year, So Frenchy So Chic asks Sydneysiders a question: do you fancy prancing through a field laced with the charm of provincial France, but without needing to book a flight? If your answer is yes, which it should be, then you'll be pleased to know that that exact setup is just casual summer weekendery when the fest rolls in each January.

The ever-popular French celebration will bring the can-can to Sydney's Centennial Park for the first time — a new venue for 2024. The date: Saturday, January 20. For newcomers, expect an entire afternoon of French-inspired niceties, including (but not limited to) gourmet picnic hampers, très bon crepes and steak frites sandwiches, and supremely good wine — all set to a blissed-out French soundtrack.

So Frenchy So Chic hinges on an eclectic lineup of artists, both taking cues from the classic sonic stylings of France and showcasing top-notch French talent. On the 2024 bill: La Femme, Marlon Magnée and Sacha Got's psych-punk rock group; Kill The Pain, aka Australian singer and songwriter Phoebe Killdeer with French vocalist Mélanie Pain; Laure Briard, fresh from releasing album Ne pas trop rester bleue; and the Serge Gainsbourg- and Angus and Julia Stone-loving Malo'.

As always, the wine and food will flow just as easily as the tunes, headlined by an abundance of bubbly courtesy of Champagne Lanson, one of France's oldest champagne houses and a So Frenchy So Chic favourite. Expect oysters, croque monsieurs, duck liver parfait, mussels, chocolate eclairs, macarons and cheese upon cheese.

Of course, there'll be plenty of French beer, cocktails, and rosé, red and white wines, too, no matter what you choose to snack on throughout the day.

For groups of ten, this year's festival also includes a $199-per-person option that gets you your own prime spot with low-seated wooden tables decorated with flowers, rugs and cushions to make things comfy, two bottles of champers, a shady umbrella, and two charcuterie hampers and two cheese hampers.

If you've got kids, you'll be happy to know that the whole thing is very family-friendly, with children's tickets starting from $25 (and entry free for kids under 12).

Images: Liz Sunshine / Simon Schiff.