Towards the culinary capital

With activities at Hue Festival 2018, the organizers wish to make Hue become the "culinary capital" (Photo: Dinh An).

The gathering of delicacies

The workshop "Hue royal and folk cuisine" will be held for the second time, with the theme: "Enhancing – developing – cooperating with tourism to reach out to the world" with the participation of top culinary experts from Vietnam and nine countries in the world. The workshop will bring together ideas and advice from scholars, researchers, scientists, and experts of Hue royal and folk cuisine; and thereby develop orientations and plans to bring Hue's cuisine to the world.

Mr. Le Tan, Vice Chairman, General Secretary of Vietnam Cuisine Culture Association, Head of the Workshop Organizing Board said that after the workshop, there will be a Gala dinner at Truong Sanh Palace (in the Citadel).

The program helps participants make an instant comparison of theory and practice through the dishes. In particular, the workshop will be accompanied by exhibitions, shows, introductions and experiences of 100 Hue royal dishes as well as folk dishes at Phu Noi Vu (Imperial Household Department).

The program will bring together nearly 30 leading Vietnamese chefs, from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho and other cities, such as food expert Pham Thi Tuyet, culinary director at the APEC Summit in Da Nang in late 2017, culinary artist Hong Nhung in Go Cong, food experts like Ho Dac Thieu Anh, Phan Ton Tinh Hai, etc.

After the success of the first and second festivals, especially the second one when the International Culinary Festival at Hue Festival 2016 attracted about 100,000 visitors to visit and enjoy food, the Organizing Board of Hue Festival 2018 said that this year, the scale of the Festival will be expanded to include 100 booths, from 20 provinces, cities of Vietnam and ten other countries in the world.

Mr. Dinh Manh Thang, Chairman of the Provincial Tourism Association (the organizer), said that the domestic partners will include the Department of Tourism, Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, tourism enterprises, and hotels. Famous restaurants, hotels, food centers of ASEAN countries and other countries, such as Japan, Korea, France, Portugal, etc, will also gather here.

The festival with the theme “Quintessence of Hue cuisine” will have a lot of space for chefs to prepare traditional delicacies of Hue, Vietnam and other traditional delicacies of the participating countries to serve the tourists.

Culinary activities at Hue Festival 2018 are expected to attract many visitors

The culinary capital

Mr. Le Tan revealed that this is the second time that the workshop is held, not to seek for or restore, but to enhance and develop royal and folk cuisine of Hue. Hue royal cuisine is unique, so through the workshop, we collect comments and advice to propose that the Government recognize Hue as the "culinary capital of Vietnam."

According to Mr. Le Tan, Hue has long ignored its culinary strength in the development of tourism. With the effort to build and promote the food brands, the Organizing Board would like to establish a chain of royal-style restaurants and organize cuisine programs where food is served up to the genuine royal standards, not like the service of  "emperor’s meals" Hue has been providing.

These restaurants are established not only in Hue but also in other regions in the country as well as all over the world. "We have worked with the Hue Monuments Conservation Center and will soon establish a real royal restaurant in the Citadel. This restaurant is of an aristocratic style, for the enjoyment of politicians and visitors to Hue. They will be served in the same way as in the palace of the ancient Nguyen Dynasty," said Mr. Le Tan.

At the second "Hue Royal and Folk Cuisine" workshop, it is expected to select a gastronomic ambassador to help facilitate the promotion of Hue cuisine to the world; to launch the campaign of the Hue Cuisine Culture Association, to proceed with the building of the Museum of Vietnamese Cuisine and Culture in Hue; to digitize Hue royal cuisine as well as folk cuisine to make it more favorable for promoting Hue cuisine and help it reach out to the world. According to the Organizing Board of Hue Festival 2018, it is advantageous that Hue cuisine-related activities at the festival are accompanied and supported by the relevant ministries, Vietnam Tourism Association, and Vietnam Food Association.

Story and photos: Duc Quang