From the 19th to the 24th of June, the International Refugee Food Festival will return to Madrid. Eight restaurants will invite skilled refugee and asylum seeker chefs into their kitchens where they will work hand in hand with the resident kitchen chefs and teams to put on a unique menu showcasing the authentic culinary heritage of their home cultures. This will be the third edition of the festival, the second in Madrid, which was first cooked …
I arrived at my second Chefugee cooking class at El Gabinete de Historia Natural near Puerta del Sol and was surprised to be welcomed into a beautiful old history museum. The space, which has been reimagined as a center for community events, is filled with ancient relics, pottery from all over the world, and even the mounted skull from some large, horned mammal. I was greeted warmly at the door and ushered into a large, …
There are very few things that truly nurture health in its entirety, that being health of the body, mind, and community, but Madrid for Refugees’ (MFR) Benefit Hikes most certainly do. The event involves a guided hike starting from Cercedilla through the surrounding mountainside and incorporates a relaxing yoga session, with an idyllic backdrop. Hikers are simply asked to pay a suggested donation of €15 with all the proceeds going to MFR directly assisting in …
A pleasant feeling of anticipation lingered in a busy makeshift kitchen where strange contraptions lay on large tables crowded with pre-prepared food and spices of multifarious shapes and colours. This was the setting of the second cooking class organised by Madrid for Refugees (MFR), in which a refugee chef shares their kitchen skills with paying attendees. Guests are taught how to craft a selection of salivating cultural dishes through an interactive experience, and this time …
Series Introduction This year marks the centenary of the First World War’s conclusion. No doubt, the following posts will be but a drop in an ocean of writing that addresses a multitude of “legacies” of the First World War; from the culture of mourning to the rise of the United States as a global leader. Here, however, I wish to focus on one legacy in particular, the importance of which will not be lost on …
Nestling into a cosy corner of the bistro La Ciudad Invisible, Madrid, last Monday evening, I had the honour of participating in a Madrid for Refugees’ Arabic-Spanish Intercambio; a spellbinding occasion that inspired more than mere language fluency, but an entire culture sharing experience. The linguist Vivian Cook once stated that given the appropriate environment, two languages are as natural as two lungs. The MFR intercambios more than live up to this claim and in …
As I stepped in from the cold evening drizzle and entered L’Artisan restaurant, I was overwhelmed by a delightful feeling of happy satisfaction and warmth. The sounds of clinking plates and crockery were seemingly chased about by those of animated chatter and chuckles that reverberated around the place. It was the unmistakable atmosphere that fills a room after a good meal, and this evening it was the atmosphere that filled the new home of Madrid …
If you’re looking for a delicious way to support the refugee community in Madrid and to celebrate World Refugee Day, look no further than MFR’s and ACNUR’s co-collaboration with the Refugee Food Festival. Food is a powerful and universal way to bring people together, which is what inspired French NGO Food Sweet Food and their co-organizer, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, to found this unique culinary event. Last year as part of World Refugee …
Many of us are aware that the world is currently facing the biggest crisis of forcibly displaced people in history. The UN estimates around 65.3 million people* have been forced to flee their homes because of persecution, war, or violence. That’s almost 1.5 times the population of Spain. When a person flees their country’s border for one of these reasons they’re defined as a refugee under international law. Even though a person may want to …
Originally posted on Naked Madrid by Daphne Binioris Chefugees are monthly dinners organized by Madrid for Refugees, where the entire menu is prepared by a refugee seeking work opportunities in Madrid’s culinary scene. Six events have been held so far, each with a different location and setting, featuring foods from Syria, the Ukraine and Venezuela. The upcoming dinner will be from Cameroon and if you want to attend (I highly recommend you do), you can …
