5th Annual Maynardville Evening
Food Market: Hospitality Partner & Food Truck Application,
Selection Criteria & Onboarding
Celebrating 71 Years of Maynardville
As Maynardville celebrates its 71st season, the Maynardville Evening Food Market (MEFM) enters its fifth year on the back of exceptional year-on-year growth. Following another record-breaking Festival season in 2025, MEFM returns larger than ever, with an extended run from 13 January to 20 March. The longer season presents even greater opportunities for our hospitality partners to engage with thousands of festivalgoers across an expanded world-class programme. The extended Festival includes an expanded ballet season featuring Cape Town City Ballet and Cape Ballet Africa, alongside Macbeth, jazz, opera,
and orchestral concerts.
While the Festival remains deeply committed to its Schools Programme, we have introduced greater flexibility for our hospitality partners. Partners may choose not to trade on School-Only Performance Nights. Vendors who elect not to open will be charged a nominal participation fee to retain their allocated trading position. Further details are available in the Q&A section below.
The Maynardville Evening Food Market has become an iconic Cape Town institution and represents the longest-running non-permanent food market presented by a festival in South Africa. Welcoming thousands of guests each season, it has evolved into a destination in its own right—bringing together exceptional food, premium hospitality, and one of the country's most celebrated cultural experiences.
Designed to be enjoyed by everyone who lives in and loves Cape Town, the Food Market offers a relaxed, open-air dining experience where guests gather before the show, during interval, or simply to enjoy an evening in the park. With an extended Festival season, more performances, and more trading days than ever before, the 2027 Food Market presents our largest commercial opportunity to date for hospitality partners.
You can download the full trading day schedule here.
How we work
We have built more than a festival—we've built a thriving hospitality community. We are committed to the success of our hospitality partners and continually invest in enhancing the front-of-house experience, ensuring every guest enjoys an unforgettable evening from arrival to curtain call.
To protect the quality of the guest experience and maximise commercial success, vendor spaces are intentionally limited. This carefully curated approach provides category exclusivity, reduced direct competition, and access to up to both theatre patrons and locals who pop in just for the food experience. For our selected hospitality partners, the Maynardville Evening Food Market offers exceptional brand exposure and the opportunity to grow alongside one of Cape Town's most iconic cultural institutions
Our culture
Our mission is to reconnect Wynberg Park with the broader Cape Town community by revitalising this historic festival and celebrating underused green spaces as places of connection, safety, and care.
Selection Process
We champion hospitality partners who prioritise quality, sustainability, exceptional ingredients, and community impact. Every hospitality category is carefully curated to ensure the highest standard of food, service, and variety. Applications are assessed on their overall merit, including food quality, presentation, operational capability, sustainability, guest experience, and alignment with the Festival. Our objective is to appoint the strongest hospitality partner in each category, creating a balanced food market that enhances the guest experience while maximising each partner's opportunity for success.
Beyond exceptional food, we ask every hospitality partner to embrace the values that define Maynardville. We believe in the arts as a force for connection, opportunity, and community, and we strive to create an experience where every guest, partner, sponsor, and performer leaves feeling enriched. For returning applicants, your feedback has directly shaped many of the improvements introduced for this season.
Fee classes
We have two FEE classes, namely:
Class 1 – FOOD VENDOR: Vendors whose core business is a Food Truck or operates from an established food market.
Class 2 – OAC COLLAB/MEFM PARTNERS: Established concerns not operating in the Food Vendor space but can benefit patrons by offering a unique food experience. This class includes food innovators, food labs, unique restaurants, training colleges, and identified high-volume Vendors.
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To be considered, please complete the application form below. Applications will only be reviewed once the application fee has been received. Successful applicants will be contacted as contracting commences. Application fees are non-refundable.
Applications for the 2027 MEFM are NOW OPEN.
2027 MEFM - APPLY HERE
Application Q&A
Q: What is the application fee?
A non-refundable administration fee of 750 ZAR is required when submitting your application. Payment details can be found on the application form. If you are submitting a second application for the same season, the fee for the additional application is reduced to 500 ZAR.
Q: Do I need to submit separate applications for multiple food trucks?
Yes, each food truck must have its application. If you’re applying for more than one truck, please complete a separate application for each.
Q: What certifications do vendors need?
A: Vendors must have a valid Certificate of Authority (COA) and a business license. If using gas, a gas certification is also required.
Q: In addition to the application fee, the daily Evening Market vendor rates for 2027 are:
-Monday to Thursday: R500 per day (except on School Booking Nights, see below)
-Friday and Saturday: R700 per day
-Sunday: R900 per day
-School ONLY Nights (performances where the theatre is booked out for school groups attending as part of the Shakespeare programme, typically Mondays and Tuesdays): optional participation—R300 per night to trade, or a R150 per night reservation fee to close and retain your allocated position for the season.
Dedicated Food Truck Vendors (see below) are required to trade on all nights, including School Only Nights, and are not eligible for the reservation fee option.
Q: What is a Dedicated Food Truck Vendor?
The festival requires a minimum of three food trucks, one dessert truck, and one coffee truck to remain open for all performances throughout the season. Vendors filling these roles are classified as Dedicated Food Truck Vendors.
Q: How do I apply for Dedicated status?
Vendors may apply for Dedicated status at the start of the season.
Q: What do I get if I'm approved as a Dedicated Food Truck Vendor?
Approved vendors receive priority site selection and seasonal discounts in return for the commitment to trade every performance.
Q: What happens if not enough food trucks apply for Dedicated status?
If insufficient food trucks apply, the festival reserves the right to appoint a vendor to fill the role based on operational need, or to bring in additional food trucks to meet the required service level.
Q: When does the festival take place?
The festival runs from 13 January to 20 March 2027.
Q: Are vendors required to operate on show days?
Yes, vendors must commit to being open on all show days and operating for the full duration of the festival.
Q: What is the available power supply at the venue?
The Park has limited electrical capacity available for hospitality partners. While improvements have been made to the venue's power infrastructure, electricity should be used only where necessary. We therefore encourage all partners to use gas as their primary cooking source wherever possible. If your operation requires electrical power, please contact the Festival team before applying so your requirements can be reviewed and approved.
Q: How can I obtain the vendor agreement, and what are the next steps?
If approved, we will email your agreement—return it promptly with your deposit to secure your slot.
Q: Whom should I contact for more questions?
For additional questions or assistance, please reach out to our support team via the contact information on our website.
Resources
-Festival Website: click here.
-Festival Programme, click here.
-Trading Days Schedule, click here.
Contact us
Vendor Queries
For Vendor applications and related queries, please email foh@openaircollective.co.za; please note that during the Festival, our response times are 4-8 hrs., pre- and post- the Festival 3-5 days.
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Sponsorship queries
Become a Maynardville Food Market Partner
Join us in shaping one of Cape Town's most iconic summer experiences. The Maynardville Food Market offers a distinctive platform for brands dedicated to innovation, design, and community. Now in its fourth year, the Maynardville Food Market has become a beloved Cape Town fixture, running for over sixty nights in one of the city's most enchanting parks and drawing a diverse, loyal audience. If you are a food or design brand looking to stand out, this is the place to be. To explore partnership or sponsorship opportunities, please email us.
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*The rates listed apply exclusively to Evening Market activities. Any additional activities during this period not covered by these rates will be billed separately. Rates are subject to change without notice. Disclaimer: We reserve the right to change any terms and conditions at any time on any platform. We also reserve the right to change or add to these terms and conditions from time to time for legal, safety or other substantive reasons or to assist the event organiser, or to ensure the safe delivery of the event. We will update this site with any such modifications as and when these modifications take effect.
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