By Yunus S Saliu
The annual organized Gambia Tourism Board (GTBoard) – Food and Beverage Festival was successfully wrapped up yesterday in present of huge crowd that wanted it to continue for another days.
This year celebration marked the 7th edition of the Festival and it is one of the Gambia Tourism Board’s prominent products that showcases and promotes The Gambia traditional cuisines whereby visitors, tourists and individuals have the opportunity to taste different types of the Gambian local dishes served at home and hotels.
This year festival lived far more than its expectation taken into consideration lots of newly introduced local cuisines, beverages, cultural and musical entertainment shows from different young, great and talented artistes. It was a well packaged festival this year compared to the previous held editions.
it attracted more tourists, individual, corporate partners from different ministries, hotels, and other private institutions with large numbers of individual that came with families and friends to attend it.
The festival worth celebrating twice in a year due to the fact that it is not just for only food and drink but it is another avenue for everyone to relax, meet new notable people from different works of life.
Apart from food and beverage vendors there were other local homemade materials such as craft, juices, clothes, shoes and so on. They displayed their goods in their various stalls neatly and attractively and gave them out in affordable prices.
It was a three days event, and each day featured about five different artistes and the day three of the festival which marked end of the event was specifically for children to honor them.
At the festival which took place for the first time at the Hypolink Village, Kotu there were lots to eat and drink which among were domoda , fufu, nyambeh ak nyebbeh, fried and roasted fish, grilled fish, fish ball, oleleh/moin-moin, chicken yassa, chawamar, ice-cream and waffle, local coos cake, chakry, wonjo, ebbeh, ‘superkanja’; meat ‘yassa’; foufou, ‘plasas’ – local vegetables; local seafood just to name a few.
The just concluded 2019 edition was another mouthwatering Food and Beverage Festival proudly organized once again by the Gambia Tourism Board.
The annual Food and Beverage Festival in its 7th year started in 2013 and it is meant to promote the Gambia’s traditional and cultural identity when it comes to Gambian cuisine among other things.
In brief remarks, Ousman Kebbeh – GTBoard, on behalf of the Gambia Tourism Board thanked all the participants and as well their partners who have been with them from the first edition of the festival till date.
He called on others especially those that have never participated before that, come next edition in 2020, to try and attend to have the experience and opportunity which the festival accord the regular attendees.