The Saigontourist Group Food and Culture Festival 2023 hosted by Saigontourist Group and some other units opened at Van Thanh Tourist Site in Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday.

Running through Sunday, the festival introduces more than 350 local dishes from several localities across Vietnam.

Along with 40 booths with experienced chefs from the Saigontourist Group and its subordinate hotels, restaurants, and resorts, the event will be attended by representatives from Vietnam Airlines and other units in southern Ben Tre and Tay Ninh Provinces. 

Moreover, it will also showcase traditional handicrafts associated with cuisine, unique traditional art performances, and folk games.

The event welcomed a large number of visitors of all ages to the opening on Thursday.

Nguyen Thi Phuong, a 50-year-old local, who often goes for a walk past Van Thanh Tourist Site, said she had been drawn to the festival since its preparation days and decided to give it a try.

Phuong tasted many dishes and was impressed by grilled duck in wild betels, roasted sparrow with coconut water, and soup served with prawn crackers from Ben Tre.

Nguyen Thi Ut, another visitor, said the festival is a chance for her to try specialties from different localities, realizing her desire to travel the northern region and islands that has been thwarted by her age and health.

Ut added that she was particularly curious about the dishes offered by famous hotels such as Rex and New World, which she described as luxurious places she has never set foot in.

A representative of Rex affirmed that the dishes the five-star hotel is offering at the festival are all cooked by its chefs. 

“It is true that the prices we charge customers at the hotel will be very different from what we are offering at this festival, where we want to introduce affordable dishes,” the hotel representative said.

The festival also includes performances of traditional music, such as UNESCO-recognized quan ho (love duet singing), don ca tai tu (southern amateur music), Hat Then (Then singing), Hue traditional singing, cai luong (reformed opera), and circus.

The Saigontourist Food and Culture Festival 2022, the first edition of the event, was crowned 'Asia’s Best Culinary Festival 2022' by the World Culinary Awards.

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