FOODIES, tourists, and Guyanese at large will be given opportunity to embark on a culinary adventure of a lifetime in a veritable food and beverage paradise when the inaugural annual International Food and Drink Fest (iFest) of Guyana 2013 is hosted at the Everest Cricket Ground at Carifesta Avenue and Camp Road in Thomas Lands, Georgetown on Easter Saturday, March 30th, 2013. And this cornucopia has been endorsed by, and is being held in collaboration with, the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce of Guyana. This prestigious event has been organized by the Guyana Karate College, and will showcase a riveting package that entails delectable food, fun and entertainment.

Festival highlights, according to the Guyana Karate College’s Vice Chairman Jeffery Wong, will include 19 international food and beverage tents and a specially arranged ‘Eat to the Beat’ concert with live performances and music from the popular Power Tech Stereo. This one-day gastronomic event will be filled with fun, authentic signature dishes, yummy treats, famous cocktails, and other popular beverages of nineteen countries from around the world.

Countries that will showcase their cuisine include Argentina, Barbados, Brazil, Canada Cuba, India, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, Russia, Suriname, the United States of America, Venezuela, and a few others. Of course, Guyanese cuisine will be prominently featured as well!

Public Relations Officer of the Guyana Karate College, Wayne Orderson, related that this exciting Easter Weekend family event is scheduled to commence at 16:00 hrs, and is expected to go well into the night. Additional features will include sale of international cuisine and drinks, a children’s activity area, live on-stage performances by local cultural groups, Latin dance performances, and a musical showcase that will depict the musical culture of all nineteen participating countries.

Moreover, there will be a ‘Chef’s Cookoff’, ‘Bartending Contest’, ‘Farmers Market’; and beer, wine and spirits’ tasting and sales. For Beer aficionados, there will be the top beers hailing from more than seventeen different countries spanning the globe. The depth and breadth of the Festival’s beer stock will simply be unsurpassed by a most comprehensive variety. There will be some of the world’s best dark beer, flavoured beer, lager, pale beer, sour beer, specialty beer, stout and porter, and wheat beer from Asia, Europe and the Americas.

Also, very experienced ‘mixologists’ will be on hand to prepare the famous cocktails of the participating countries, including the martinis, highballs, lowballs, shooters, and tropical drinks such as the Margarita, Mai Tai, White Russian, Caipirinha, Martini, Daiquiri, Mojito, Tom Collins, Pina Colada, Cuba Libre and Sea Breeze, amongst others.
And for the children, young adults and adult teetotallers there will be the most extensive array of non-alcoholic beverages available, including smoothies, spritzers, sodas and mocktails.

For food lovers, this festival is a celebration of both local and global food, including cheeseburgers, kebabs, lasagnas, seafood, and spicy Indian curries, which will all be a part of the spectacularly varied menu.

Tickets are prices at $1500, and $1000 are redeemable in chits.
Tickets can be obtained at Ashmins (High Street), Bhagwans Store (Water Street),  Giftland OfficeMax, Gizmos and Gadgets,  James Rubis Service Station (Mandela Avenue), King’s Jewellery World (Quamina Street), Rent-a-Tent (Rahaman’s Park), Roraima Duke Lodge, and Roraima Residence Inn.

All proceeds from this event go towards the building fund of the new dojo and headquarters of the Guyana Karate College, which is currently under construction at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara.