Two days of taste, music and entertainment await Ruse at the Garash Cake Festival

Wednesday, 02 September 2026

Ruse will celebrate its iconic sweet symbol with a two-day program on September 19 and 20, which will bring together culinary challenges, children's activities, music, art and opportunities to walk through the city's history. The fifth edition of the Garash Cake Festival will transform the central part of the city into a space for meetings, entertainment and lots of chocolate. The full program is distributed across several stages and locations around Svoboda Square, the Income Building and the State Opera - Ruse.

The festival begins on September 19 /Saturday/ at 10 a.m. with the official opening of the stage in front of the Municipality building. At the same time, the competition for the best Garash cake will also begin, which this year will give participants the opportunity to compete in the categories of traditional, non-traditional and homemade cake. There will also be pastry demonstrations as part of the competition, and traditionally the audience will also be able to try the participants' cakes.

Throughout the day, visitors will be able to participate in various activities. From 10 am to 8 pm, around the Freedom Monument, there will be an “Alley of Fashionable Spaces” with a photo corner, a creative workshop for young and old, and a bazaar with handmade products by designers. In the space in front of the Opera House from 10 am to 4 pm, a children's master class in confectionery will be held with chef Ivan Alexandrov, and the youngest guests will also be able to have fun with animation from the Art Gallery - Ruse and the competitions of the “Children's Champions” Academy.

Curious encounters await the audience in the program of “Children's Cake “Garash”, organized by the “Ivan P. Pavlov” Tourism Group, as well as in the event “Classical Music and Chocolate”. For lovers of the city's history, two guided walking tours are planned - morning and afternoon, with participation free of charge and places limited to 20 people per group.

There is also a place in the Saturday program for the youngest movie lovers. From 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the Great Hall of the Income Building, the Bulgarian children's film "Emma and Chocolateland" will be screened for free, and the evening will continue with the music of DJ Groovy George. The culmination will be the Queen Sensation concert at 8 p.m., after which the festive evening will end with a laser show by Andy Faulkner.

The second festive day, September 20 /Sunday/, is dedicated to even more chocolate experiments and culinary meetings. The children's master class with chef Ivan Alexandrov will last from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and "Fashion Spaces Alley" will await visitors throughout the day.

On the stage in front of the Municipality, the audience will be able to watch a series of culinary demonstrations with established chefs. Chef Daria Rusanova will present “Shoco-mania: Melt me, shape me, win me!”, Chef Svetlana Genova – “ShocoBanitsa: Roll and win”, and Chef Ivan Saramandov and Chef Thomas Hewitt will enter the “Ice Clash: Nitrogen & Chocolate”. They will be followed by “Garash’s Caramel Embrace” with Chef Momchil Kirilov, “Modern Classics: The Taste of Tomorrow” with Chef Mihail Naydenov and “Improvise This! Pastry Survival” with Chef Ivan Alexandrov. Some of the demonstrations will also include games with the audience.

The culmination of the culinary program will be the awarding of the winners of the competition for the best “Garash” cake, which will start at 3 p.m. on the stage in front of the Municipality.

The second day will also offer activities for children, free tourist tours and the opportunity for creativity in “Fashion Spaces Alley”. The evening program will begin at 7 p.m. with DJ Groovy George, and graduates of the Ivan P. Pavlov School of Tourism will take to the stage with the dance performance "The Pulse of the Day". The audience will enjoy performances by Kristiyan Ilkov, and from 8 p.m. the festive program will continue with Robbie's concert, which will close the two-day event.

You can see the full program of the Garash Cake Festival here.

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