The culinary showcase took center stage at the Central Market this Saturday. Four restaurants earned recognition as Soles or Soletes in the Repsol Guide, offering the finest Alicante appetizers ahead of the Repsol Suns presentation at the Provincial Auditorium next Monday. The chefs demonstrated their creations through live showcooking in the market’s newly opened kitchens, inviting shoppers to sample the dishes at nearby counters.
Restaurants featured in the demonstrations were Nou Manolín, El Portal, Moments, and Estiu, each distinguished by the esteemed guide.
Macu Ferré and Mar López from Estiu, a Solete in the Repsol Guide, opened with a dish featuring rice with minced beef tail, mushrooms, and pomegranate. Antonio Martínez Moreno and Yolanda Cañas from Moments, also a Solete, presented an oregano pickle salad on brioche stuffed with seafood and pringá from the pot. Sergio Sierra of El Portal offered a Mediterranean suckling pig tataki with gordal olive juice and piparra. Ismael Martínez and Ignacio Huesca from Nou Manolín joined the exhibition with a rock cod prepared low and slow, accompanied by pickled carrots and cumin.
The initiative drew strong appreciation from Central Market shoppers as they browsed the stalls. The Deputy Mayor and Chairman of the Alicante City and Beach Tourism Board, Mari Carmen Sanchez, also joined the activity. She emphasized that superb local products fuel the city’s gastronomy and praised the idea of bringing the Repsol Suns premiere closer to Alicante residents and visitors. Sanchez toured the cooking demonstrations with Alicante’s chefs along with Lidia López, Commercial Counselor, Herick Campos, Director General of Tourism, and María Ritter, Manager of Guía Repsol, to highlight the collaboration between the market and the guide.
Big innovation at the Soles Repsol Gala in Alicante: Only women will cook the menu
Beyond the live cooking, the evening at the Central Market featured additional happenings in anticipation of the major event on Monday the 27th, when the nation’s top chefs will convene in Alicante. Around the Market Square, extras handed out hundreds of balloons, wooden spoons, and paella pan envelopes to children eager to cook rice. A 360-degree mobile photo area was installed for visitors, and a parade of musicians drew curious crowds from the city.
Moncho Riquelme and his team from Casa Riquelme continued the weekend’s schedule with another Repsol Guide event on Sunday, the 26th, featuring traditional rice dishes based on chicken, rabbit, and vegetables for around 1,500 attendees in the town square.
Like the other activities, the events pave the way for the 2023 Repsol Suns ceremony next Monday the 27th at the Alicante Provincial Assembly Auditorium.