Experience Chatgaiya food festival at InterContinental Dhaka

Dhaka: A ten-day-long Chatgaiya food festival is currently taking place at InterContinental Dhaka till August 23 in a move to promote local traditional delicacies.

Chatgaiya Food Festival is the first among the desi cuisine series. The hotel’s management plans to come up with similar events, featuring specialties from different corners of the country.

Chatgaiya is a term that is synonymous to anything related to the port city of the country—Chattogram. It refers to all the elements from culture to cuisine to custom that is relevant and rooted in this region. As the region is bordered mainly by Myanmar and the Arakan Ranges and the coastal belt—the cuisine reflects these areas too. Fish, Dry Fish (shutki), are the staples of Chatgaiya cuisine. This is mainly because the district is just by The Bay of Bengal—a haven for a variety of fish.

The festival was inaugurated on August 13 at the hotel premise. It was attended by David O’ Hanlon, General Manager, InterContinental Dhaka; Olivier Loreaux, Director, Food and Beverage; Rezwan Maruf, Director, Sales and Marketing; Saadman Salahuddin, Director of Marketing; Md Ashraful Alam, Head of Alliances, BRAC Bank (banking partner); and Byjed Al Hassan, Managing Director and CEO, Probashir Helicopter; along with other key personalities from the hospitality industry and media. The opening was marked by a short but lively musical piece.

InterContinental Dhaka management inaugurating Chatgaiya Food Festival at its signature dining outlet Elements on August 13--Photo: Monitor

Chatgaiya Food Festival is being held at Elements, the signature dining outlet of InterContinental Dhaka (during evenings).

It features a huge array of typical and authentic dishes, originating from Chattogram. Their cuisine is laced with lots of spices, mainly red chilies, onions, and garlics, which adds a lot of taste and aroma to their foods.

Beef, like the fish and the dry fish, is another very important staple of Chatgaiya cuisine. Kala Bhuna and Mezbani Gosht have become global favorites now—transcending boundaries and crossing borders. These two curries have unparalleled fame and popularity around the world.

Along with these two top favorites, there are many authentic Chatgaiya dishes featured in the festival. The spread has a variety of Bhortas (Aloo chingri, hilsa, tomato), Cholar Dal Beef Curry, Pomfret Fry, Mutton Yakhni Pulao, Nihari, Khaisda (shrimp curry with bean pods and eggplants), Loitta fry—aare some of the featured specialties.

There are also creative items like Jhura Mangsher Sushi (suhi with spicy shredded beef). Traditional Chatgaiya desserts like Mezbani Payesh, Shuji Halwa complete the meal spread, which also has the regulars like mousses, pastries, cakes, and, of course, local specialties like rosgollas, chochoms, etc.

A local band H2H, led by Sadi, performs melodious renditions of traditional Chatgaiya songs. Apart from the delicious local delicacies the Chatgaiya food festival has another very tempting treat—Buy One Get Three offer, sponsored by BRAC Bank PLC.

Also, there is a Helicopter Joyride for the winner of the raffle draw, courtesy Probashir Helicopter. With so many exciting elements in and around the event—it is indeed a festival in the true sense, offering fun and food and festivity in one premise.