Foodie fest!

Went to FHC Beijing this morning, and it was loads of fun to see what the Chinese people are eating, what's "hot", as they say. The short of it: coffee, chocolates, cheese and wine! Strange, you would think the expo was in Europe, huh?

FHC is the biggest food industry, food services and hospitality event. It's mostly a B2B event, so it's food producers/exporters reaching out to importers or co-operators/partners. Therefore, the range of products at the expo were from food to fridges, grills, fresh seafood, even brands like Metro were there, for wholesale services.

I just went there as a consumer, just to see what's happening in the industry (good for client work and also personal interest-- due to my hotel background), and to see how the booths competed for my attention. ;) It was fun! I had espresso coffee, chocolate ice cream, tried "natural" water, tasted American cheese, Chinese canned fruits and another cup of espresso!

Spain and Greece had the biggest booths. Guess that is because of their rich cuisine and flavor, such as oils, wines, spices? Australia and New Zealand had lots of cheese and there were some Chinese companies with seafood (of course, it's not a real China experience without the fish, hehe).

I saw a barista competition, where an handsome American man was demonstrating how to mix a perfect espresso. There were chef's competitions too. Even food media had their booths!

But my favourite interactive booth was the French one: they had a super techie chef, hooked up to headset mike and all, explain about French breads and how to make them! Haha, the biggest crowd was around that booth, both tasting and watching!

Have taken a few photos, bit blurry, but will upload tomorrow. Hope some hotels and restaurants start importing those goodies that I tasted today!