Benidorm Mayor Agustin Navarro

Yesterday was the official launch of the 2013 Gastronomic food calendar which will be taking place in Benidorm over the course of this year.

Deputy Mayor and Councillor of Tourism Gema Amor, gave the introductory speech followed by the Mayor, Agustin Navarro. They both emphasized the importance of establishing Benidorm as a centre of Gastronomic cuisine - something that in the past has not been automatically associated with the town.

With the resort attracting more foreign tourists each year it is essential to focus attention on the things that the town does well - and cuisine comes high on the list. Many of the Brits coming over are only just discovering tapas, which is probably the thing most associate with Spain after sun, sand and euro pints... although I´m not sure if thats the correct order! With the emergence of so many All Inclusive hotels it is something that unfortunately many will not discover - one of the hazards of this phenomenon.

Each restaurant will display this poster

The first event of the Gastronomic calendar begins next week, "Jornadas de la Cuchara" ("Hot Dish Days") - starting on Monday 4th and ending on Sunday 10th March. 19 restaurants are taking part in this week long extravaganza with the aim of showcasing a broad spectrum of hot cuisines available here, ranging from traditional to modern but based on local recipes.

On each day of the week the participating restaurants will offer a different 3 course menu with half a bottle of wine for a set price of 20 euros - some also include coffee. The restaurants are spread out across the town - 11 are in the Old Town and include the famous "La Cava Aragonesa" (the first tapas bar as you enter Tapas Alley opposite Royal Queens hotel) and the Villa Venecia Hotel and stretch as far as "La Ermita" - the restaurant opposite El Cisne rastro.

You can get a booklet from the tourist information centre which will list all 19 restaurants and the menu of what they are offering on each day - there is also a map on the inside back cover to show you the location of each.

Waiting for my lunch!

Representatives of all the participating restaurants were at the inauguration and after the official speeches and photos were done everyone was invited to sample a soup, which had been provided by La Cava Aragonesa. Funnily it was dished out by Agustin and Gema donning aprons which had been specially produced to mark the event... strangely it was left to Gema (the only woman in the line up) to actually ladle the soup out into bowls... the men probably didn´t know how to!

The Town hall and Tourism associations have joined forces to promote and enhance the local catering industry with the support of Hosbec, the hoteliers association, which was represented by the President, Antonio Mayor. Together they endeavor to highlight that Benidorm is, to some, an undiscovered Gastronomic heaven. The next event after this is the "Tapas & Pinchos" competition, which will take place from 15th - 21st April.