From the opening night round table with super-chefs Juan Mari Arzak, Dani Garcia and Carme Ruscalleda to the closing cooking demonstrations by Juan Roca and Dani Garcia, this year’s Andalucía Sabor had something for everyone. It was great being able to meet and chat with Andalusian food and wine producers, as well as sample their wares, and take in the various activities scheduled on the exhibition floor (two of my favourites were the jamón slicing and best new chef of the year competitions). In the conference area you could sit comfortably and watch presentations, round table discussions and fabulous cooking demos by some of the best chefs in Spain.
One of the real treats for me was meeting up with fellow bloggers, such as @Seville_Writer @annalibera @jorgeguitian @hollycocina @rafaprades @GuiaRepsol @elcocinerofiel @Gastronomiaycia @anaentreolivos @FerrerPepe (to name a few), many for the first time after having “known” them on Twitter for the past couple of years. It was great being able to put faces to the names. I also really appreciated having access to the Zona Blogger as a place to recharge both myself and my iPhone. Many thanks to Norma for running that.
My only complaint about the exhibition was that, especially for a food and foodie related event, the tapas on offer were both expensive and uninteresting, and after the first day we took to having our lunch break at nearby tapas bars. But overall it was a well-organised, informative and entertaining three days and I look forward to being a part of the next Andalucía Sabor in 2013.
Below are some pics taken at Dani Garcia’s closing demonstration during which he invited fellow Twitterers (seen furiously at work in the front row) up on stage to taste the various dishes he was making. Given the prominence of social media coverage this year it was a fitting way to close the show.
Other blog posts on Andalucía Sabor:
Gastronomía & Cía
Tubal
Cocina.es
Andalucia.com
Cocinando Entre Olivos