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 up in Paris in 2016, with the support of UNHCR. Since then, it has spread across the world with representative festivals in New York, Cape Town, and Amsterdam. Our city’s event is co-organised by MFR and our Chefugee team, aided by the UNHCR and the Paris-based NGO Food Sweet Food organisers, as some of our best Chefugee cooks will serve up a delectable gastronomic insight into their identity and culture.
The international festival has a mission with 3 core objectives; firstly, to change perceptions with each chef bringing their own culture, passion, and precious talent to the table; secondly, to promote the professional insertion of the refugees involved as this event connects them with a vast community of catering businesses and volunteers; and finally, to eat well and differently with menus offering diverse flavours from around the world fused with a fascinating experience full of fluid cultural exchanges.
The Madrid line-up has an intrinsically multicultural flavour with dishes from three continents and five different countries. Here’s who is on the menu for the week, it is highly recommended you reserve, no in advance payment is necessary:
✱ Tuesday 19th June (Dinner)
Pierre T. – Cameroonian Cuisine
Elmandela – Reservations: 911 42 98 00
Dinner menu: 20€
✱ Wednesday 20th June (Brunch)
Samira W. – Syrian Cuisine
BaniBanoo – Reservations: 810 52 11 27
Menu del dia: 16€
✱ Thursday 21st June (Brunch)
Noor M. – Syrian Cuisine
Amicis – Reservations: 910 58 78 80
✱ Thursday 21st June (Dinner)
Ahmad A. – Sudanese-Egyptian Cuisine
L’Artisan-Furansu Kitchen – Reservations: 914 20 31 72
Dinner menu: 30€
✱ Friday 22nd June (Dinner)
Wesal A. – Syrian Cuisine
Barrutia y El 9 – Reservations: 913 19 29 46
✱ Saturday 23rd June (Brunch)
José Valentín A. – Venezuelan Cuisine
Elektra Madrid – Reservations: 912 54 59 11
Brunch menu: 30€
✱ Saturday 23rd June (Dinner)
Rachida K. – Moroccan-Syrian Cuisine
Ochenta Nextdoor – Reservations: 914 27 03 12
✱ Sunday 24th June (Brunch)
Wesal A. – Syrian Cuisine
Gigi Restaurante – Reservations: 680 40 89 71
