Arrels 2026 will fill es Mercadal with live cooking, local produce, music and activities for the whole family

The Arrels 2026 Fair will return on 19 and 20 September to the Recinte Firal des Mercadal with a programme fully focused on Menorca’s agri-food products, live cooking, gastronomic outreach and family activities. Admission will be free on both days, with opening hours from 10 am to 9 pm on Saturday and from 10.30 am to 2 pm on Sunday.

Cooking will once again take centre stage at the fair, with nine live sessions featuring local chefs and producers. On Saturday at 11 am, Bárbara Lluch, private chef at Brand Experiences, will open the gastronomic programme with a young Tirka Masala cheese accompanied by Menorcan kulcha. At 12 noon there will be a tasting of organic and local products with APAEM and CBPAE, while at 1 pm a monkfish sausage with capers, Menorcan almonds and wild herbs will be presented.

The programme will continue at 2 pm with a workshop on dressed guixons with pumpkin and pork rib and, at 4 pm, with the proposal “What does Menorca taste like?”, focused on the island’s gastronomic identity and the relationship between products and the senses.

At 5 pm there will be a new culinary demonstration featuring monkfish panadera and Menorcan almond cake. Shortly afterwards, at 5.45 pm, the latest issue of “Cuinons”, the magazine of Menorcan recipes published by the Consell Insular de Menorca and designed by Setmanaris i Revistes SL, will be presented, featuring recipes by Bep Al·lès prepared in the kitchen by Pau Sintes.

One of Saturday’s highlights will take place at 6 pm with the presentation of the Foodies on Menorca Gastronomy Awards, organised by Foodies on Menorca. The gastronomic programme will conclude at 7 pm with a demonstration dedicated to stuffed squid, led by Gabriel Pons, Menorcan Young Chef 2026.

On Sunday, the programme will continue at 11 am with a tribute to Menorcan participants from all editions of the World Food Gift Challenge. At 12 noon, “Gelaïmada, a new way to bite into Menorca” will be presented, a proposal by Nesto Moll, from Bengelat, and David Faner, from Sa Sucreria. At 1 pm, scalded fish and Menorcan lobster soups will be the focus of the fair’s final culinary demonstration.

Arrels will also combine gastronomy and music. On Saturday, after the opening ceremony at 10.30 am, Sis de Ponent will perform, while throughout the day the outdoor stage will host Fet a Mar at 1.30 pm, Entonats at 5.30 pm and Orquestra Huracán at 7 pm. On Sunday, Aires des Barranc d’Algendar will perform at 11.30 am, followed by Delorean at 1 pm.

The children’s area will once again play an important role in the programme, with free activities on Saturday from 11 am to 8 pm and on Sunday from 11 am to 2 pm. There will be popular and traditional games, giant games, a creative area and face painting, as well as workshops on lantern-making, tomato and olive cocas, pastissets and fandango dancing.

More than 40 exhibitors, producers and makers will complete the Arrels offering, with cheeses, cured meats, oil, honey, beer, wine, salt, preserves, sweets and other local products, as well as restaurants and organisations linked to the agri-food sector.

The councillor for Economy and General Services, Maria Antònia Taltavull, says that Arrels “is consolidating its position as a benchmark event for giving visibility to local products, producers and Menorca’s gastronomy”.

The live cooking sessions will include tastings and will require prior registration. Reservations can be made from 9 September by calling 971 356 868, Monday to Friday from 8 am to 2 pm, or directly at the fair’s information point on the day of the activity.