Salón Gourmets Triumphant Madrid Return

October 19, 2021October 19, 2021 Madrid Metropolitan Business, Food, madrid news, What's on in Madrid

One of Spain’s leading trade fairs, the Salón Gourmets returned this week with a packed out IFEMA once more hosting the showpiece gastronomic event.

Madrid’s Vice Mayor, Begoña Villacís, was an early attendee of some of the 100,000 visitors expected, to open the four day event, while Madrid regional premier Isabel Diaz Ayuso visited today to promote Madrid’s produce.

Ayuso stressed the importance of the food sector to the Madrid regional economy with an export market in 2020 of nearly 1.8 billion Euros, with Portugal, Italy and the UK the largest destinations.

Salón Gourmets is the largest Fine Food and Beverages Fair in Europe and one of the most prestigious in the world with restaurants, hotels, distributors, catering and specialized wholesalers and retailers.

Spain’s gastro sector is huge, mirroring its deep cultural roots in a country famous for its food and wine.

For the first time since the pandemic, international buyers are coming to the Spanish capital – particularly from the UK, which despite Brexit, continues its love affair with Spanish food and wine.

Alex Clayton, of award winning Spanish restaurant, Tasca Dali, desrcibed the fair as: “the best of Spain and Spain at it’s best.”

Paul Grimwood, owner of Ultra Comida and Spanish Wines Direct, one of the UK’s leading importers of Spanish food and wine, was at the fair as part of the company´s mission to ” search Spain for delicious food and wine” was also impressed with the capitals booming restaurant scene, which included a visit to newly opened Charrua, describing it´s USP as “sourcing amazing Galician beef and ageing in-house”.

Madrid´s restaurant scene has rebounded strongly this year and much credit given to Ayuso´s “Madrid first ” strategy, that saw her defy the central government, and lead her Partido Popular to the biggest electoral victory in their history at the regional elections in May of this year.

The 34th fair comes nearly two years after the last one in 2019. The 2020 event was an early casualty of the coronavirus pandemic and was cancelled just as Spain entered into lockdown.

Apart from buyers looking to catch up on the latest industry innovations and trends, it is also an opportunity for Spain’s regions to showcase local foods and promote providers and suppliers.

The Communidad de Madrid joined many others including Castilla y Leon and the Basque Country in large stands with the best of the best from their regions.

The fair runs until Thursday 21st October.