In celebration of Filipino Food Month this April, Cordillera cuisine took take center stage again as the Department of Tourism Cordillera and its partners brought back the “Mangan Taku” food fair starting April 21.
The food fair opened with a chef’s competition where amateur cooks and chefs in the Cordillera created dishes using indigenous food preparation knowledge and modern cooking techniques.
The top five competitors will join the Mangan Taku Food Crawl set on April 29 to May 2, wherein the chefs and featured restaurants will serve their winning entry to invited guests for tasting, appreciation, and enjoyment
Scheduled on April 27 is the Mangan Taku Food Conversations where selected guests will talk about Cordillera food delicacies, experiences, and the importance of food in tourism branding. The event will also feature videos of heritage dishes and cooking demonstration streamed via Facebook.
Another feature of the Mangan Taku this year is the Cordillera Chef’s Fair-Take Out Edition on April 28 to May 2. In partnership with Cordillera Chefs organization, food booths will be set up for the public to enjoy or have a taste of Cordillera cuisines and indigenous food products.
Mangan taku, a Kankana-ey word meaning “let us eat,” was launched by DOT in partnership with the city government of Baguio and the Department of Agriculture in 2019.
The event was cancelled in 2020 due to the Covid-19.
DOT-CAR OIC Director Jovita Ganongan said the Mangan Taku Food Fair aims to provide an avenue for stakeholders in the food and restaurant industry who are also directly hit by the pandemic to promote and sell their products while providing the public opportunity to learn and explore local cuisine and appreciate the region’s food landscape, both onsite and virtually. – Carlito C. Dar
