Entertainment
24 July, 2025
Time to embrace everything Italian
ALL the tastes and colour of Italy will come to the fore this Saturday when one of the largest events of the Cairns Italian Festival is held in Fogarty Park.
Mareeba will host three events as part of the festival early next month, but before that, many others will be staged throughout the region.
The biggest event is La Festa Food and Wine day which kicks off this Saturday from 10am.
Fogarty Park on the Cairns waterfront will be the scene of food stalls featuring authentic Italian food, live music, cultural performances, and fun activities for all ages.
The event concludes with a fireworks extravaganza on the Cairns Esplanade.
Other events include:
La Messa – Italian Morning Mass on 27 July
Festa del contadino (vegetarian four-course dinner with wines) at Pistacchi Cairns in Shields Street on 28 July
Farm House (four-course feast called Festa del raccolto) at the Salt House in Cairns on 29 July
Festa del Mare at Vitalia’s Italian Restaurant in Cairns on 30 July
Festa del Maiale at Piccolo Cucina in Cairns on 31 July, and
Carnevale Masquerade Cocktail Party at The Benson Hotel on 1 August.
Attention then turns to Mareeba which will host the Moriconi-Bomben Soccer Cup on 2 August and the Mareeba Salami & Sausage Festa and the Sa La Briscola – Italian Card Competition on 3 August.
The soccer game is a tribute to Alfio Moriconi (deceased) from the Mareeba Football Club and John Bomben from Leichhardt Football Club, who both devoted a lifetime of passion to their respective clubs which were well-known rivals who fought out many battles on the soccer field over the years.
The Salami and Sausage Festa promises to seek out the best homemade salami and sausages in the region, with several awards to be presented and the overall winner up for a $2000 cash prize.
Expert judges will rate each entry out of 20 in the areas of taste, aroma, density and colour.
There will also be a beautiful homemade Italian lunch and desert to savour provided by the Mareeba International Club with live Italian music by The Fratelli’s, featuring Tony Galliano and Michael Riviera, who will keep the party going with classic Italian hits that will have you singing and dancing.
The Briscola Italian Card Tournament will start at 3pm.
Tickets for all events are already on sale at www.cairnsitalianfestival.com.au
