KK Food Festival to showcase native food again

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KOTA KINABALU: Much to the delight of artisans, gourmands and foodies, Kota Kinabalu Food Festival 2015 is back for the fifth time this April 10 to 12 at Suria Sabah Shopping Mall.

KKFF 2015 will not only be exhibiting food manufacturers, gourmet appliances and food bazaar, but also international and traditional cuisine from Korea, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Doris Thian, general manager of Ministry of Events (MOE), the organizer of KKFF, said between 3,000 and 5,000 visitors were expected to participate in the festival daily.

For the second consecutive year, she said KKFF will showcase local traditional Kadazan cuisine.

“There will be exhibitors from Penampang and Papar showcasing native food in five to six stalls during KKFF

“Kadazan food is one of the cuisines we want to bring forth to youngsters in Sabah as many have not tried Sabahan food before like hinava and sagu worms,” she said in a press conference here yesterday.

There will be a total of 50 booths at the food festival featuring food suppliers, food manufacturers, cooking utensils, international food and food bazaar.

Thian said KKFF aimed to cultivate the appreciation of good food among the public, to encourage creativity in the local dining scene as well as to provide a platform for industry players to interact.

On top of the food excitement, children and their parents are welcome to participate in family activities by Global Art, and also try their luck in KKFF Daily Lucky Dip at 3pm with purchase of RM50 and above.

Meanwhile, Sri Pelancongan Sabah Sdn Bhd publicity and publication executive Lee Mei Tchuin@Chloe hoped to see KKFF gained international publicity as the event could attract people into Sabah.

She said the native cuisines showcased at the KKFF would be one of the highlights of the event and should be shared with others.

Lee has personally tried raw, barbecued and deep fried sagu worms, and deemed the deep fried variation the tastiest when the worms were dipped into salt and chilli.

But her favourite native food is tuhau or wild ginger that can be used as an ingredient in cooking beef or chicken or eaten on its own.

On the other hand, PacifiCity has come on board as the key event partner for KKFF this year.

Set to open in March next year, PacifiCity promises to be a foodie haven in Kota Kinabalu, offering a mouth-watering mix of local delights and international fare.

Pacific Sanctuary Holding Sdn Bhd sales and marketing general manager Jeff Lu said PacifiCity aimed to showcase the special cuisines in Sabah to the world.

PacifiCity, located on a 25-acre land in Likas, is the largest mixed development in East Malaysia that includes condominium, hotel, medical centre, university and shopping mall.

Lu said PacifiCity has 500 shoplots ranging from 50 square feet to 1,800 square feet in the mall.

The smaller shoplots allow young entrepreneurs or smaller food and beverage (F&B) operators to acquire a unit and kick start their business, he said.

The shoplots are currently selling at RM3,900 per square foot. However, PacifiCity is giving 15 per cent discount for buyers during the KKFF.

“The shoplots are around RM3,200 per square foot after the 15 per cent discount,” Lu said.

He added that the first 50 buyers who paid RM10,000 booking fee for a unit at PacifiCity will receive an iPad Mini 3 during KKFF 2015.

For more information on KKFF, visit www.facebook.com/KKFoodFest, website kkfoodfest.com or call 012-8895506.

Also present at the press conference was MOE project manager Amanda Audrey Chong.