The seafood festival is showcasing the rich variety of local seafood and features a fresh fish market, theater and musical performances, live cooking sessions, a children’s area and a Saudi coffee corner.
- The festival aims to redefine the taste for seafood by showcasing a wide range of products
- CEO of the Culinary Arts Commission Mayada Badr: This is the first-of-its-kind festival to educate Saudis and non-Saudis on our seafood culture
JEDDAH: The four-day seafood festival in Jeddah has been a hit with residents visiting ROSHN Waterfront to sample a range of seafood delicacies, from appetizers and soup to main courses.
Several restaurants and food truck owners have participated in the festival, organized by the Saudi Culinary Arts Commission and held between Aug. 23-26.
The festival aims to redefine the taste for seafood by showcasing a wide range of products. It also provides a platform for local fish sellers and restaurant owners to capitalize on the community’s growing support.
Mayada Badr, CEO of the Culinary Arts Commission, said: “This is the first-of-its-kind festival to educate Saudis and non-Saudis on our seafood culture and help them understand the products and the fishing techniques that fishermen used when catching the fish. With an aim to promote seafood heritage we gathered different seafood vendors who were selling shrimps, calamari, and different kinds of fish freshly caught from the Red Sea.”
“We also had a cart selling some homemade fries and balila (a tangy chickpea-and-pickle dish) as part of encouraging traditional Saudi food. Since in Saudi Arabia we consume a lot of meat and chicken, we wanted to bring back the people to the sea as there is a beautiful Red Sea which is a part of our heritage and produces loads of amazing fish. One of the goals is also to encourage people to buy from fishmongers, for which we had fresh fish stalls for people to buy from, and if they want delivery services, we even collaborated with Jahez.”
Badr said that this was just the beginning, as organizers planned to build awareness about seafood through the festival. “In the future, we will bring much bigger events for people to enjoy,” she said.
Azim Ghurab, owner of Damdam fish stall, said: “In our stall, we offered an extensive menu that focused on preparing fresh seafood of the visitor’s choice, where we provided a fresh catch fried in our homemade marinade recipes and served with different ingredient sauces for the guests to enjoy as they prefer, either as a takeaway or an eat-in option.”
“We are grateful to the Ministry of Culture and the Culinary Arts Commission for providing us with this platform,” he said. “We hope to receive more such opportunities and participate in similar events that will play a decisive role in branding our special ingredient seafood dishes and also help build a positive image by attracting new customers.”
Participating for the first time, Omar Hazim, C-Box restaurant partner, served top-rated dynamite shrimps and fries at his stall. “The freshness of the shrimps and the sauces used in the marination made our stall unique from others in the festival.”
Serving local as well as nominally priced exotic seafood varieties, Bakarat Seafood Cusine Restaurant found a golden opportunity to sell its diverse cuisine; visitors could sample fried and grilled fish, shrimp, calamari or crab, as well as sushi with sauces.
Khalil Osta, Reham Osta and Reem Osta, founders of Osta Sandwich Restaurant in Jeddah, participated in the festival to explore business opportunities while showcasing their finest fish and shrimp dishes to guests and evaluating the city’s food capabilities.
Apart from food stall operators featuring live cooking, participants included fish sellers and seafood spices sellers who were interested in sharing their knowledge, in addition to selling their products to visitors and connecting with people from the restaurant industry for business collaboration. They consider this festival an opportunity for developing business strategies.
The festival included attractions for the whole family, with a day of live entertainment, food and demonstrations. A special children’s zone was organized as well as a section for arts and crafts.