Days after a damning report into Portugal’s lack of nutritional knowledge and sharp criticism of the general diet consumed by the public, (HERE) the Algarve has just won a European prize for its gastronomy.
The award for the ‘Best European Region in Tourism and Gastronomy 2018,’ was given by the European Council of Food and Wine Confraternities (CEUCO) in the 13th round of AURUM Awards, this year held in Athens.
The restaurant Infante Panorâmico, in Praia Verde, Castro Marim, was picked as one of two winners, elected ‘Best European Restaurant 2018’, sharing first place with Trattoria Al Bersagliere in Verona,
The awards blurb suggested that the Algarve's gastronomic flavors and know-how have conquered millions of people all over the world and are one of the main tourist attractions of the Algarve and an important cultural expression of the region.
The president of the Algarve Tourism Region, João Fernandes, said the award “brings us recognition and perseverance to continue to preserve and enhance our gastronomic and oenological patrimony, making the region known through its dishes and dining experiences.”
The tourist board chief said that the last few years “has seen the Algarve consolidating its culinary and oenological offer, as a strategic product for the development of tourism in the region, throughout the year and throughout the territory.”
Fernandes mentioned ‘Algarve Cooking Vacations,’ which creates culinary and gastronomic holiday programmes and has just won an award in Italy, (HERE)
A recent tourist board study define the profile of visiting gastronomes, identified market trends and defined the best strategies for the offers for the region.
Portugal's wine was not ignored either, with the award for 'Best European Winery,' going to Vinho Arinto de Bucelas - Quinta do Boição.
Created in 2005, CEUCO aims to bring together the largest number of confraternities and gastronomic and oenological associations in the European Union, with a common denominator: "to defend the products and recipes that characterize the unique gastronomic identity of each region."
After Athens, the next CEUCO congress will be held in Albufeira in 2019.