The second World Street Food Congress to be held in Manila is now confirmed to be happening from May 31 – June 4, 2017!
This year, it is going to be at the SM Mall of Asia Concert Grounds in Pasay City, at the corner of Sunset Avenue and Asian Drive.
The organizers recently held a press conference where I got to meet these culinary celebrities!
WORLD STREET FOOD CONGRESS 2017
WSFC17 promises to be bigger, bolder and better than 2016. If you’ve been to the World Street Food Congress last year, so many people visited the event, more than the organizers had anticipated. LOL, they didn’t know that Filipinos were this crazy about food! Well, now they do, and they’ve taken the feedback and experience from last year to improve this year’s WSFC17.
Last year, an estimated 75,000 people visited the World Street Food Congress. I know. I was there, waiting in line! 
This year, they are expecting 100,000 people, and they are ready.
WHAT IS THE WORLD STREET FOOD CONGRESS?
Basically, it’s like a bazaar, but for street food. The street food vendors from all over the world are curated by no less than street food expert KF Seetoh of Makansutra fame. If you watch any food channel for some time, you’re sure to have come across Singaporean KF Seetoh trying food from different places in Southeast Asia, or touring visiting chefs like Anthony Bourdain around Singapore street food.
This year, it’s 5 DAYS of feasting! Over 30 master hawkers and pop ups from 13 countries are setting up shop at the World Street Food Congress! Instead of you flying out to those different countries to try their street food, they’re bringing them here to you!
ENTRANCE FEE IS P150, BUT IT IS CONSUMABLE (redeemable at food & beverage stalls)
Opening Hours:
Wed to Fri, May 31 to June 2 – 4:00 PM to 11:00 PM
Sat, June 3 – 1:00 PM to 11:00 PM
Sun, June 4 – 1:00 PM – 9:00 PM
For the list of hawkers and street food demo schedule, please visit http://wsfcongress.com.
My suggestion is to be there early. The really popular food items run out really fast!!!
Expect the prices of food to be P150 and up. It’s a bit expensive for street food, but the vendors did fly all the way out to Manila… and it means you don’t have to spend for airfare and travel expenses to experience the street food from those places. I just think of it as an experience.
Dialogue
Aside from the food market that’s open to the public, there’s also something called the Dialogue. This year’s theme is “Re-Imagine Possibilities” and the 2-day conference will have industry experts give talks about topics revolving around the “Re-Imagine Possibilities” theme in regard to street food.
The keynote speaker is Greg Drescher of the California Institute of America. Michelin-star chefs Malcolm Lee (Singapore) and Andy Yang (Thailand) will also be speaking. KF Seetoh, creator and curator of the World Street Food Congress, and founder of Makansutra, and Chef Sau del Rosario, the World Street Food Captain for the Philippine contingent, are co-moderators.
And for something more to look forward to, KF Seetoh heavily hinted that Anthony Bourdain will be one of the dialogue speakers! Anthony Bourdain will be giving us the latest update on the Bourdain Market in New York. He is also looking for 100 or so street food vendors to fill up Bourdain Market.
There will also be cooking demonstrations by various presenters like Claude Tayag, Malcolm Lee, and Peter Lloyd, chef of Sticky Mango, which was ranked the #1 London restaurant on TripAdvisor.
There’s also a Pitch Box Hackathon where you can pitch your awesome idea to a captive audience. Your idea could be the next big thing!
Dialogue Tickets are available at http://wsfcongress.com/ticket-pricing-registration/. Corporate bulk tickets and student discounts are available. Participation fee is US$250 and includes a WSFC17 gift pack + tea breaks + lunch on both days + Jamboree food voucher.
SHOWCASING FILIPINO FOOD
World Street Food Congress 2017 is supported by the Tourism Board Philippines (TPB). It is expected to again present the Philippines as an emerging culinary hub in Southeast Asia. WSFC17 is set to be this year’s largest congregation of heritage food advocates, industry think tanks, international delegates, hawkers and street food fans.
KF Seetoh and team recently went on a food spotting and exploration trip. They found some foodie gems like Lamb Monggo in Davao, and Sisig Paella, something that KF Seetoh expects to be a crowd favorite at the WSFC17.
This year’s Filipino specialties will feature six locales: Davao City, Bicol, Pampanga, Iloilo, Ilocos, and Bacolod.
Chef Him Uy de Baron demonstrated how to prepare his take on the beef pares, called Gooba Hia:
STREET FOOD TO LOOK FORWARD TO:
Old favorites like Bali barbecue ribs will be back, but there will be new items that are expected to steal the limelight, like Singapore’s Marmite Chicken Burger, Mexican tacos, Malaysia’s Claypot Apom Manis.
Also look forward to Soi Lum, translated at “water olive” from Cantonese. This is the first time that this dish has been available outside of Guangzhou, China. According to Seetoh, the layers of these mochi balls are so perfect, that you can’t tell the difference in texture of the different layers when you bite into it, you can only tell because of the different flavors. They are topped with toasted, sweet chrysanthemum petals. I love sweet and floral chrysanthemum tea so I am looking forward to trying this Soi Lum. 
The 13 countries to be represented include:
- Singapore
- Indonesia
- Thailand
- Japan
- Taiwan
- USA
- Philippines
- Malaysia
- Vietnam
- India
- China
- Mexico
- Germany
KF Seetoh also told us how some people’s lives have changed after being recognized as serving really good street food. Opportunities opened up, and some are even opening up branches abroad, just from starting out with a little 10-seater food stall serving one spectacular dish!
Mark your calendars and see you there at the World Street Food Congress 2017!
#WSFC17 #makansutra #worldstreetfoodcongress #itsmorefuninthephilippines #tpbdelivers #tpbgovph
