Birmingham city centre was alive with the sounds and smells of the West Indies at a new exotic food festival.

The first Caribbean Food Festival, in Victoria Square attracted hundreds of visitors. As well as stalls selling authentic Caribbean cuisine, there was a bar selling traditional rum punch and a stage with live music from soul divas Beverley Knight and Jaki Graham.

TV chefs Rusty Lee and Levi Roots dropped by to sample the dishes, which included goat curry, jerk chicken and rice and peas, along with Brum’s own Michelin-starred chef Glynn Purnell.

Organiser Denise Mickle said the event, sponsored by Enco Products, was ideal for Birmingham in June. She said: “We have the German market in the winter, so we wanted to create something for the summer. What says summer better than the Caribbean?”

Pauline Walters, stallholder and owner of the Deep restaurant in Bristol Street, said: “There’s not a lot of Caribbean restaurants in Birmingham so people can’t try the food very often.

“It also unites the Caribbean community.”