The stage is set and preparations are well on the way for the fifth staging of the Magic Mango Menu/Pineapple Culinary Competition, slated for tomorrow, 7th August 2010. Chairperson of the Mango Festival Committee Jedidiah Maxime said yesterday that over 20 chefs and 10 bartenders from some of the island’s major hotels have confirmed their participation in this
year’s event. The bartenders will be competing in two categories — alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages,while the chefs will be asked to prepare two entrées featuring mango and pineapple as the basis of their recipes. The chefs will work on a rotation basis with each chef allotted a certain amount of time to complete their dishes.“This is to help promote mango and pineapple as a staple in the cuisine that is being prepared in our local hotels,”Maxime said.

“The level of interest that we have had over the years has definitelyincreased. The interest is there and some of the young chefs have used this platform as an opportunity to launch their careers and get some recognition.” The public is invited to bring out their family to the Antigua & Barbuda Hospitality and Training Institute, located at Dutchman’s Bay, on Saturday from 9 am, for a fair-like day. Free samples of the dishes prepared with mangos and pineapples will also be available.

Local ice cream makers will also form a part of the line-up and a live steel pan orchestra will also be available. A brief ceremony will precede the competition.Sponsors include: Digicel, Photogenesis, Search Antigua, Evcon Printing and School Zone.

This is the most corporate sponsorship the event has ever received and other businesses are being encouraged to support this venture.