On the morning of November 23, at the Italian Culture and Brand Center (Casa Italia), the Food Fair took place: From Fried Rice Balls to Bun Cha: A Journey Between Italy and Vietnam within the framework of the Italian Cuisine Week 2024, with the participation of ten famous Italian and Vietnamese restaurants in Hanoi.
In his opening speech, Mr. Francesco Arcuri - Deputy Ambassador of Italy to Vietnam emphasized the desire for cultural exchange, promoting cooperation and moving towards deeper friendship between the two countries:
“We wanted to explore the commonalities between the two countries’ cuisines, which is where the name comes from: From Fried Rice Balls to Bun Cha: A Journey Between Italy and Vietnam, street food represents the culinary cultures of two countries, where people on both sides enjoy chatting, spending time, walking and enjoying food.”
The event featured guest chefs who are experts in the culinary industry such as Mr. Hoang Tung, Co-founder, Head Chef of Å by TUNG and T.U.N.G dining restaurants - in the Top 100 best restaurants in Asia; Madame Binh, Head Chef of the MICHELIN Selected 2024 restaurant - Luk Lak; Ms. Tram Tran, Wine Expert Vietnam Best Sommelier 2024 - Manager of Chapter Dining restaurant; Mr. Ngo Thanh Hoa, Head Chef and owner of East by NGO THANH HOA restaurant
Commenting on the event, Madame Binh - head chef of Luk Lak restaurant shared: “Both cuisines are based on using many fresh ingredients, rich in variety and balanced flavors. Italian and Vietnamese cuisines have distinct and distinctive differences between regions. For example, Northern Vietnam prefers harmonious flavors, Central Vietnam tends to be salty and spicy, and the South prefers sweet flavors. Northern Italy has a lot of delicious wine, Central Italy is rich in fresh produce, and the South is famous for olives and fried foods with a lot of sweet flavors.”
According to chef LUK LAK, just like Italian cuisine has a variety of pasta dishes, some are dry, some are served with soup, some are served with thick sauce; the collection of Vietnamese noodle dishes also has strange similarities. All made from rice grains or familiar vegetables, Vietnamese noodle dishes are combined with many different ingredients, using different processing methods to create hundreds of delicious dishes.
The event received many positive responses from participants, with unique street food dishes such as pizza fritta, porchetta, focaccia farcita, panino con salsiccia, shrimp cakes, pho rolls, banh bot loc and indispensable sweet dishes such as famous Italian gelato ice cream and delicious desserts from different regions of Vietnam. This is an opportunity to enjoy delicious dishes prepared by 10 typical Vietnamese and Italian restaurants selected by the organizing team such as Gelato Italia, Cugini, Luna d’autunno, La Fiorentina, Mediterraneo, Caffe italia, Dragoncello, Sanzio, Mano and Quan An Ngon.
The food fair “From Fried Rice Balls to Bun Cha: A Journey Between Italy and Vietnam” will take place on November 23-24 from 10:00 - 18:00 at Casa Italia, 18 Le Phung Hieu, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi.
Launched in 2016 by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Italian Gastronomy Week is an annual event taking place worldwide to celebrate the quintessence of Italian culinary heritage, highlighting its values, flavors and cultural significance. The theme of this year’s gastronomy week is “Mediterranean Diet and Vegetable Cuisine: Traditional Health”, highlighting the Mediterranean diet as a healthy and sustainable eating pattern.
The 9th Italian Cuisine Week in Hanoi will include the following events:
