Meatopia is coming to Glasgow for 'world's best barbecue' food festival

One of the UK’s best-loved food festivals is coming to Scotland for the first time - and the barbecues are firing up here in Glasgow.

Meatopia will take place at SWG3 next summer, showcasing chefs from around the world as they unveil specially crafted dishes made over open flames. Add drinks, live music and incredible big names - the last 12 years have seen Yotam Ottolenghi and El Bulli chef Adriana Cavita appear - and we have a feeling this will be popular with Glasgow’s ever-growing foodie crowd.

Over the course of the year, chefs involved host tasting sessions and refine each dish before unveiling their creations to the public. Each day of the fest, the chefs then cook a bespoke dish over live fire, right in front of your eyes. You can eat as many as you like using Meatopia’s Meatbucks, purchased beforehand with ticket bundles or from the roving MeatBucaneers during the event.

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The idea for Meatopia comes from the late American writer Josh Ozersky, and the concept reached London in 2013. Creative Director Mat Kemp says Glasgow is the “perfect next step” for the festival of food and fire cooking.

He said: “Our festival is all about world class chefs creating one dish each, with knowledge and influence from global fire-cooking culture, but using the best locally-sourced ingredients – and Scotland’s larder is a dream come true for any cook. The cooks will have so much to play with.

“The success of Meatopia has been overwhelming. It sells out every year because it really is a one-of-a-kind experience, founded to champion the use of naturally raised and produced , ethically sourced meat and fish and vegetables, cooked using only fire or smoke. It really is the world’s best BBQ. Since taking Meatopia to Dublin in 2017, 18 and 19 we’ve been looking up and down the UK for a place to take it next, and Glasgow was the perfect fit.

“This is about hero-ing hands-on cooks, age-old techniques and natural food, and Glasgow has that in abundance. It has such an incredible food scene. As much as anything else, I wanted Meatopia to be in Glasgow to give me an excuse to explore it more.”

Meatopia arrives at SWG3 on June 6-8, 2025 and the line-up will be announced in the coming months. A limited run of early bird tickets are available here, with prices starting at £10.

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