ILOILO City – The Dinagyang 2023 Food Festival will be joined by local micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and other food businesses, some of which started to grow at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to J Scott Sarria, founder of Kaon Ta Iloilo (KTI) and one of the organizers of the food festival, between 300 to 400 kiosks will be made available for the food festival.
“Open sa tanan. We want to give variety sa food. Indi lang kita mag-limit sa barbeque kag inasal,” said Sarria.
Even Korean and Chinese food and locally grown food will be offered during the food festival.
The Dinagyang food festival gives small food businesses the opportunity to recover from two years of sluggish bus iness due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“But we are not just giving opportunities sa mga established restaurants. May mga tawo man nga ga-negosyo lang during Dinagyang, dira lang gagwa,” Sarria said.
Established restaurants that are under the Iloilo Hotel Restaurants & Resorts Association (IHRRA), a long-time partner of the Dinagyang Festival in the conduct of food festival, will also showcase their respective specialty cuisines.
Next year’s food festival that will start from Jan. 19 to 22 will have a wider venue. Five streets in the downtown area will serve as food festival areas. To make sure it will be well-organized and well-curated, each area will have its respective organizer.
Sarria added that the bigger the areas for the food festival, the safer it is for everyone as safety protocols will still be observed.
“We will make sure indi lang siya namit sa tiyan, namit man siya sa mata kay namion gid namon ang design sang mga streets,” he added.
Here are the food festival areas and their respective organizers:
* Valeria Street which will be organized by KTI
* Arsenal Street – ToLove Boutique and Events
* Yulo Street – Penthouse and Fab Events Organizing Services
* Aldeguer – TnD and Juanica and John
* Delgado Street – IHRRA
Those who want to join may register from Dec. 16 to 17 at the Mary Mart Center from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
According to Sarria, the kiosk rentals range from P8,000 to P12,000 a day./PN
