Masterchef Extraordinaire John Torode & Lebanese Culinary Maestro Maroun Chedid put Dubai Food Carnival on the ‘Gastro-Tainment' Map

Dubai’s newest food, beverage and entertainment extravaganza welcomes thousands of visitors, eight celebrity chefs, scores of world-class performers and over 100 food and drink stalls

Dubai, UAE, 21 February 2014: The first-ever Dubai Food Carnival, a two-day family friendly food, beverage and entertainment extravaganza, opened today at Dubai Festival City offering visitors a completely fresh concept of ‘gastro-tainment’.

Thousands of people poured into Dubai’s hotly-anticipated foodie event – part of the 23-day Dubai Food Festival - as a host of celebrity chefs put their skills into practice. The Chef’s Dome hosted international TV chefs, including UK Masterchef judge John Torode, Chef Silvena Rowe, star of BBC food show, Country Show Cook-Off, Lebanon’s Maroun Chedid, India’s Sanjeev Kapoor, and Manal Al Alem, the ‘Queen of the Arabic kitchen’, as well as UAE-based stars such as Tarek Ibrahim, Hakkasan Dubai chef de cuisine Andy Toh Cyhe Siong and Radisson Blu, Dubai Deira Creek Hotel’s Uwe Micheel.

“The Dubai Food Carnival is an amazing event to start Dubai’s month-long Food Festival – there is so much to see and do here, everything you could possibly want for a family weekend,” said Chef Chedid, voted 'Chef of the Year 2013' by the Toques Blanches du Monde. “Everyone is having so much fun and the response in The Chefs Dome has been fantastic – it’s clear that everyone here is connected by their shared love of cooking, cuisine and fun.”

With the inaugural event closing tomorrow (Saturday), the Carnival’s central stage also hosted world-class performances by a troupe of Brazilian Capoeira dancers, Japanese Basho Championship sumo wrestlers, including three-time world champion, Nara, comedian Ali Al Sayed, and Mina Licione, star of Broadway hit, STOMP, in the live ‘Matbakh – Kitchen Rhythm’ show.
Admission is AED30 per adult while kids under 12 go free. For more information visit www.dubaifoodcarnial.com