St Ninian’s Church could be set to host the festival being organised by the Manx Food Market Traders Association.
If approved the event would run from May 27 to June 8.
Organisers say the festival would act as a venue that ‘celebrates Manx produce and hospitality’.
But the plans (24/00358/C) submitted by chair James Quayle have received backlash from some quarters online.
Writing on comment section of our website iomtoday.co.im, some speculated that the Foodies Village would likely be ‘just burger and chips’ and ‘undercooked sausage meat on stale baps’.
Another said the market ‘could be extremely embarrassing for the island as ‘we all know it will be anything but a foodies market’.
Sharing examples of some of the backlash the event had received online, Chair of the Manx Food Market Traders Association James Quayle has now hit back at some of the criticism.
He also encouraged residents to ‘put down [their] sticks and stones and pick up [their] knives and forks].’
Mr Quayle said while event staples such as burger and chips will be available, ‘Italian, Mexican, South African, plant based, Scottish, Asian and lots of local dishes and produce’ will be on offer at the venue.
One commenter suggested that the festival would be a ‘great little cash flowing business under the guise of government approved providers’.
Responding to the claim, Mr Quayle said: ‘Yes and no.
‘A great little cash flow for small local produce and food and beverage businesses that otherwise have been priced out of the TT Market by the Government or struggle to benefit fully from TT visitors by working on their own.
‘Delivered by a not-for-profit organisation run by volunteers and who are raising money for St. Ninians Church.’
Mr Quale added: ‘Please put down your sticks and stones, and pick up your knife and forks’.
If given the go ahead, the Foodie’s Village plans to offer breakfast, lunch and dinner through stalls and food trucks.
The venue will also play host to live music events with buskers and a fine dining facility staged inside the church itself.
A marquee at the site would be a space for ‘informal seating’ complete with a ‘stage area that would be used for local musicians and entertainers’.
The lower half of the site, closer to the St Ninian’s Road end, would provide a space for pop-up ‘foodie’ traders and a local craft artists.