The Night Markets at Carriageworks

Mike McEnearney pulls together two nights of regional produce and open-fire cooking for Vivid Sydney

As creative director of Carriageworks Farmers’ Markets in Everleigh, Sydney, No 1 Bent Street chef Mike McEnearney has planned a new event, The Night Markets, on two evenings in June as part of Vivid Sydney’s program.

A toasty “cooking with fire” theme is set to warm up the cool nights. “It’s winter. It’s cold. We love the smell of fire; it makes us want to rug up,” says McEnearney. “[The Night Markets] are about getting back to the very simple method of cooking with fire. It’s about comfort more than anything else.”

Pepe Saya, Young Henrys, Single Origin Roasters and Cake Wines are among the line-up of local producers who have stalls planned. The Night Markets will also feature demonstrations from chefs more than familiar with fire-licked food – the gang from Porteño, Efendy, Billy Kwong, Icebergs, Cornersmith and Thievery will all cook over flames well into the night.

McEnearney was inspired by the success of Carriageworks’ Christmas Twilight Market last December, and this new event is part of a wider plan for the precinct. He cites The Night Markets and the almost sold-out Sydney Table dinners, where dinner, dance and creative chefs will meet for collaborations and live performances, as a sign of things to come.