Pastry Palooza Beer Festival

Pastry Palooza returns to Worthing from Friday 6 to Sunday 8 November, running 12pm to 10pm each day. It's now in its fourth year, having first launched in 2023, and it's a mini craft beer festival that doubles as a pub crawl across the town's independent pubs and bars. Instead of crowding into one big venue, it spreads out, so you can wander between sites rather than queueing at a single spot.

The whole thing takes place across seven venues: Bottle & Jug, Tern Basement, Fox & Finch, Foresters, The Old Bike Store, The Tasting Room by Merakai and The Brooksteed. Around 40 beers are involved over the weekend, and the focus is on the heavier, more indulgent end of the spectrum: dark, fruited, pastry, milkshake, sweet and sour beers, stouts and imperials. The pastry side comes from collaborations with local bakers, with Bodhi's Kitchen among those on board this year.

The idea was inspired by Northern Monk's Dark City festival in Leeds, which pairs beer with a sweet treat or a pie, and this is Worthing's take on that. It's less of a formal event and more of a loose trail through the town's independent scene, so you can take it as slow or as fast as you like. If you're after the full list of what's on tap, you'll find it on their social media, @pastry.palooza.

Entry is free, and the festival runs from midday until 10pm on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. With seven venues to choose from, you can start wherever suits you best and work your way across town.