The Ubud Food Festival 2023, one of Southeast Asia’s most exciting culinary events is back. From 30 June to 2 July 2023, the celebrated festival will be bringing more than 40 local and international chefs in an array of shows, talks, classes and dining experiences.
The festival’s theme is Soil (‘Tanah’), as the source of life and food, this year’s speakers will dig deep into the significance of this crucial natural resource that sustains our lives. “Soil always provides and this year we want to honour its fundamental importance. The land is a wise and spiritual mother that we often forget and while it continues to nourish us, it must also be protected,” says festival Founder and Director, Janet DeNeefe.
From Michelin-starred to Asia’s and the World’s 50 Best, the chefs coming to Ubud Food Festival 2023 come highly decorated. Over the three festival days they’ll be appearing in special lunches and inners, food tastings and cooking demos, masterclasses and food talks; bringing their particular expertise with them, be it fusion dining or eco-friendly food produce.
Joining the festival from abroad this year will be Filipina talent, Johanne Siye, who was voted 2023 Asia’s Best Female Chef by Asia’s 50 best restaurants awards and now helms Singapore’s Lolla as their head chef, focusing on produce-drive cuisine. Gabriele Castagnetti, who has been working as a food scientist for the last 20 years in Europe and Asia.
His projects mainly aim at creating healthy and delicious food whilst at the same time solving environmental problems like deforestation and climate change by focusing on plant-based foods. Also LG Han, chef and owner of the award-winning, Michelin-starred ‘New Singaporean’ restaurant, Labyrinth, whose menu primarily utilises produce drawn from local farms and is inspired by old Singapore recipes and traditional cooking techniques.
Homegrown heroes include Chef Hans Christian from Jakarta’s August, recently voted Asia’s Best New Restaurant; Petty Elliott, chef, food critic and cookbook author who recently published The Indonesian Table’ and is on a mission to bring Indonesian cuisine to the world. The list goes on!
Ubud Food Festival 2023 offers thought provoking panel discussions, immersive masterclasses, workshops, food tours, long table lunches, dinners, jungle foraging and cocktail parties. At night you can unwind at the Festival hub while experiencing Bali’s best pop-up food stalls, film screenings, live music and DJs. It’s three days and three nights of festive, food-focused fun.
To find out more about the program, line up, special events and tickets head to ubudfoodfestival.com or follow them @ubudfoodfest on Instagram.
