Rui Pastorin & Khalel Vallo
The 25th Macau Food Festival kicked off on Friday, again gathering food lovers to sample cuisine from different parts of the world.
Having entered the sixth of its 17-day run yesterday, the annual event in Praça do Lago Sai Van (西灣湖廣場) had several people waiting for the festival to open in the afternoon despite the cold and wet weather. Among them were a group of four local students aged between 18 to 20 who were all experiencing the festival for the first time.
“We’re excited”, the group told the Post yesterday, particularly for the Japanese food as they all enjoyed eating sushi, in addition to the fair’s Korean food and dessert selection. As they prepared to enter the venue, the youngsters, who had heard about the event through social media, joked that their only hope was that the food on offer would not be too expensive for them.
Waiting alongside the students were a 25-year-old first timer named Ira, who was accompanied by a friend who was attending her second food festival. The latter highlighted that the event served as a good platform to showcase international cuisine ranging from Chinese and Filipino fare to Korean and Thai food. “It’s not always that you can be in one place that gathers it all for you to try”, she said, excited for what’s ahead. Ira, meanwhile, highlighted that the festival is a place where you can see people of different nationalities try food from different parts of the world, including those who might be encountering dishes from certain cultures for the first time.
When the opening time came, various fairgoers were looking to sample what was on offer. And among them were two 13-year-old local students named Jessie and Naomi, who said they attend the festival annually. They described this year’s edition as enjoyable with plenty of food choices and noted that the event was well organised, though the layout made it easy to get lost.
Another annual festivalgoer was 33-year-old Denver, who commented that this time, he felt that the selection was becoming repetitive. “Everybody’s doing the same thing. So, there’s no variety,” he said, adding that more international options could improve the experience. He pointed out the Japanese section as a standout, particularly highlighting the quality of the oysters, wagyu sandwiches, and sashimi.
Post reporters also spoke with several vendors participating this year, one of whom is Duc, who operates a stall with his team selling Vietnamese food. Marking their sixth year participating in the food festival, the 60-year-old noted that it is not too different to previous iterations, with the weekend seeing a lot of customers while the event remains well-organised. “It’s always good”.
Duc, whose booth has had many customers, added that as Macau is an international city, having booths showcasing a variety of products from different places is good for Macau and for promoting the city. To take this further, he added that more promotion for the festival could be done across various platforms while taking advantage of the annual food fest coinciding with the annual Macau Grand Prix (MGP) could also attract more visitors.
Moreover, participating for the second year is an Indian vegetarian restaurant presenting a number of dishes from dosa to vegetable biryani. A 69-year-old female representative highlighted that they are one of the booths offering vegetarian cuisine and that, so far, the festival has been great and has had more people visiting compared to the previous year. “For me, this year is better”, she said, noting that the increased number of festivalgoers might be due to the festival marking its 25th edition, as well as that locals look forward to visiting the annual event. So far, she said, their booth has been doing “very good” and as the festival continues, they want to continue promoting vegetarian food to the fairgoers.
Another return participant is Tina, 40, who runs a booth selling Himalayan food. She said that her team has joined the festival for five or six consecutive years. This time, she noted, they aim for strong sales as the event continues. She added that the festival remains an important opportunity for her team, as the steady turnout each year helps introduce Nepali and Indian flavours to more festivalgoers.
Lastly, 40-year-old Nicole, who sells Australian-themed snacks, said the festival offers valuable visibility for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). “This is a very successful event that does let SMEs or vendors gain exposure on their products and their brands in Macau to tourists and to locals,” she said, adding that her goal this year was to expand awareness of her brand, and encourage visitors to try her products and direct customers to her shop.
The 25th Macau Food Festival runs through November 30, being open from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. from Mondays to Thursdays, and 3 p.m. to midnight from Fridays to Sundays.
Fairgoers eat in a designated eating area or explore the various booths at the 25th Macau Food Festival yesterday afternoon. – Photo: Rui Pastorin
Foodies check out stalls at the 25th Macao Food Festival outside the Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Centre in Sai Van yesterday. – Photo: Khalel Vallo
