BAGUIO CITY – The 17th Hotel and Restaurant Tourism (HRT) weekend will take place from October 24 to 26 at the Baguio Country Club, showcasing Filipino native cuisines through competitions with 440 participants, including students, professional cooks, and chefs from various regions.
Mary Lou Galiste, Executive Director of the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Baguio (HRAB), stated that participants are coming from Luzon to Visayas: “Halos lahat sumali; ang wala lang participation ay Mindanao dahil may regional competition sila.”
The HRAB weekend competition will consist of 70 food competitions, including categories such as best regional ingredient using bagoong, vinegar, rice, kiniing, pinakbet, pinikpikan, cacao concoction, regional fruit jams and preserves, panghimagas, kakanin flambe, tupig, and traditional cuisines. These entries highlight the rich culinary heritage of our country.
Anthony De Leon, HRAB President and the General Manager of the Baguio Country Club, expressed, “I guess the way we have positioned the City of Baguio is not as a natural attraction, and not as a climate, but also we are trying to promote the culinary destinations in the country, not just in the north,” he stated. De Leon wants to highlight the competition among the professionals and students to showcase the variety of regional cuisine and Filipino dishes, whereas he also said that HRT is dynamic and growing in participation and innovation.
Moreover, the judges that will be present in the HRAB competition are at the forefront of promoting Filipino cuisine, headed by Glenda Barreto, Via Mare, and Myrna Segismundo.
National culinary contests will feature the HRT weekend competition winners, according to Galiste. By Rachelle Quilling