York Christmas Market: "let's build up momentum for the New Year"
We've been chatting to the Shambles Kitchen as the St Nicholas Fair is underway.
Last updated 30th Nov 2021
It's hoped a Christmas boost this year in York can help to build up momentum for the New Year.
The St Nicholas Fair is up and running up until the 23rd December. With sixty-eight alpine chalets spread across Parliament Street and St Sampson’s Square, visitors to the market this year can expect a range of unique gifts, seasonal food and drinks and local produce.
Simon Long from The Shambles Kitchen in York said:
"We're very excited to be back with a semi-normal Christmas after last year. We had a stall last year but it was a much reduce market without any chalets. This year it feels more Christmassy and safe at the same time.
"We closed for a couple of months throughout the whole pandemic at the Kitchen, but other than that we were open. It's great to be busy, and for a lot of retailers and traders this is a crucial time of the year.
"Christmas is very important for all of hospitality and retail. A lot of people have struggled through the pandemic, so to be busy at Christmas is so important to build up momentum for January and February.
"Everyone is feeling festive at the Kitchen - especially my fiancé makes our staff on the sausage stall wear Christmas hats! I've not quite started the Christmas music just yet, but there is a festive feeling.
"It's nice to wish people a merry Christmas - we didn't really do it last year!"
The Shambles Kitchen also experimented with sparklers in sandwiches during the Bonfire Night celebrations a couple of years ago - and the idea took off.
"On the 5th November we have our sandwiches named after infamous York characters, so we created a 'Guy Fawkes sandwich'. An influencer saw this so we kept getting asked for sandwiches with sparklers!
"This Christmas we're doing a Scandinavian sausage stall - the sausages come from Sweden despite having a German style. All the condiments and toppings are from Sweden as well, so we'll have nice looking and festive food.
"If you think about the long and dark winters in Scandinavia, they're amazing at pickling and fermenting things, so it was good to try and replicate that.
"I love Christmas, so I force all our staff to love it as well! Our manager Basil isn't really a fan of Christmas, so I'm working on him! The rest of us get into the Christmas spirit".
Visitors and residents can also expect a magical festive back drop for their Christmas experience in York. Organised by York BID in partnership with Make It York, the winter light scheme this year includes beautiful Christmas trees on St Helen’s Square, Parliament Street and Shambles Market and York’s historic bars illuminated with thousands of twinkling lights. The Tree of Light at the Eye of York will also be lit up over the festive period.
Following last year’s virtual Christmas market, an online market will also run on visityork.org throughout the whole festive season.
Sarah Loftus, Managing Director at Make It York, said:
"We’re delighted St Nicholas Fair is returning to the city this year and to be working with so many local businesses to make the event extra special for residents and visitors.
"York has so many wonderful attractions, retailers and hospitality businesses and there is a huge array of unique experiences on offer this Christmas. This is all set against the magical backdrop of the winter lights scheme which creates a special ambience for those visiting the city centre during the festive period.
"Our team have been working hard behind the scenes with the support of York’s Safety Advisory Group to ensure robust event plans are in place. This includes a new layout to help the flow of people visiting and fewer alpine chalets to give all visitors more space to enjoy the market safely.
"We’re supporting the Council’s initiative to keep York safe and open this Christmas, by encouraging our traders and visitors to wear face coverings if possible."