Taste of Abu Dhabi is my most favourite food, drink, and music festival in the world. For a foodie like me, you would dig this one. I have been going to this 3-days event when it started in 2014 and it never fails to amaze me with good food, music, and fun. My personal tip is to always get the VIP ticket because it entitles you to stay in their VIP lounge which is very convenient after going through the stalls and three food vouchers and two drink vouchers which is more than what you pay for since food prices range from 15-30 AED and some drinks cost up to 60 AED. Just do the math and you will get the logic. But my point is, the experience is so worth the price!
It is also a music festival since they have an incredible line-up of bands, musicians, and DJ's and for this year's main artist- Bjorn Again, which is a satirical parody of Abba, they have made the first night a blast with their fun and entertaining performance.
If you are an aspiring chef or just a good cook, you must try their cooking challenge with renowned chefs all over the world. Make sure you register early since the queue is quite long and there are only limited slots. I have gotten the chance to do this on my third year and it completed my Taste of Abu Dhabi experience. It was a surreal feeling to cook with Chef Ed Baines and our personal assistant chef, Hannah from ICCA. In the picture, she is Chef Jenny Morris, who is also known as The Giggling Gourmet. Watching her cook live was very entertaining and she got some dance moves.
Taste of Abu Dhabi is not only filled with the top restaurants and food chains in Abu Dhabi but it is also a window for some companies and sponsors to promote their products and services. They also give freebies which is certainly my thing.
As you can see, the food were served in sample portions. Everything was just great and it's like flavours of the world since there are different cuisines in the festival. There are some which were blockbuster especially the Velocity Burgers but nothing disappointed my expectations. It is much better to go there in group so that you can actually share a lot of dishes and drinks then get a bite of each one.
Here's what on the picture above:
Lobster & Turkey Bacon Roll by Velocity
Crispy Shrimp Tempura with Spicy Aioli by Barfly
Teriyaki Beef Fried Rice Bowl by Teatro
Quesadilla de Hongos (Chestnut mushroom and cheese) by Loca
I have also tried the following below but was too excited to devour it to even take a picture:
Duck Siopao by Teatro
Velocity Burger by Velocity
Chipotle Glazed Chicken Wings, Cool Blue Cheese Dip by The Sportsman's Arms
Lotus Deep Fried Ice Cream by The Royal Orchid
All in all, Taste of Abu Dhabi is a total food, drinks, and music experience. Can't wait for next year's event!
Love and peace.
Loca