Executive chef Vũ Văn Thành, winner of the Golden Spoon Awards 2015, will be one of the three judges of Easy Cooking. — Photo: TGSA
The
three-day festival, sponsored by Vietnam National Administration of Tourism
(VNAT), will include several gastronomy events as well performances by
Vietnamese A-listed singers.
More
than 150 food stalls will be set up on the 3,000sq.m area of the Royal City
Square, showcasing the diversity of Vietnamese cuisine with more than 1,000
dishes and 200 kinds of drink.
Wine
tastings, a BBQ party, bartender demonstrations are also on the agenda.
Festival
goers will also have chance to challenge themselves in some funny contests such
as “Taste of Food” – which tests competitors with knowledge on delicacies of
countries all over the world, “Hot Dog” eating competition which is for
couples, and the “Food & Drink Champion”, which challenges contestants to
set record in eating and drinking.
Those
who love cooking can compete the Easy Cooking competition launched on March 25.
To compete, entrants need to send a photo of their self-made food. Once their
photos are selected, they will compete with other rivals at the Food Fest to
win the VNĐ50-million (US$2,200) prize. The judges of the contest include
Vietnamese-American celebrity chef Jack Lee, executive chef Vũ Văn Thành of the
Lotte Hanoi Hotel, and executive chef Filippo Moreli of the Pullman Hanoi Hotel.
The
“Vietnam Food Art” contest is for food stylists and photographers, who will be
required to take photos during three days of the event. The best collection
will be given a VNĐ30-million ($1,300) prize.
Celebrity
chef Jack Lee, whose creations have been served to Angelina Jolie, Clint
Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Oprah Winfrey and Barbra Streisand, will prepare a
special dinner for 200 VIP guests every night during the event. Entitled Dinner
of the Star, the dinner will respectively dedicate to Vietnamese, European and
Asian cuisines.
Nguyễn
Thị Thanh Hương, deputy head of the VNAT said: “As gastronomy is an advantage
of Vietnamese tourism, we have paid attention on how to develop our flavourful
cuisine for tourists. I believe Food Fest will be an effective tool to promote
Vietnamese food, and therefore to promote Vietnamese tourism.”
Many
of Việt Nam’s famous artists will perform at the Food Fest 2017. Those figures
include Vietnam Idol 2014, Nhật Thủy, Vietnam Idol 2015 Trọng Hiếu, Vietnam
Idol 2016 Janice Phương, the heartthrob singers Noo Phước Thịnh and Sơn Tùng
M-TP.
It
is expected that the event will welcome about 30,000 people.
By VNS