On Sunday, April 28, you might learn how to say “yummy” in several different languages. At the very least, you can sample the creme de la creme of international cuisine, prepared and sold by the 27 foreign consulates of Guadalajara, who will gather at the pretty Centro de Amistad Internacional (International Friendship Center) and offer such delights as caviar crepes (Russia), paella (Spain), salmon (Norway), cakes (Israel), sushi (Japan), ceviche (Peru), cinnamon rolls (Sweden) and rib-eye steak (Argentina) called “al vacio.”
The day-long event begins about 1 p.m. — come at noon if you want to attend a Mass said by a priest from among the city’s Catholic hierarchy — and lasts until 8 p.m., according to Filemon Mendoza, who promotes the event.
“The gastronomic festival is a big deal among the consulates. It has been going on for more or less 20 years and it used to include a parade for the children of consular staff,” he said, emphasizing that the food is normally quite good, considering that each consulate wants to put its best foot forward.“The Russian booth also offers vodka,” he went on. “The Salvadoran consulate makes a delicious tortilla filled with cheese, meat or beans, which they call ‘popusa.’ The Lebanese consulate has ‘kipe,’ which is a fried ground beef wrap, and salpicón, which is made from sausage. The United States usually has hot dogs and hamburgers.”
Other countries represented are Ecuador, Germany, Holland, France, Switzerland, Chile, Korea, Colombia, Italy, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, India and China. A few countries, such as Syria, Magreb and Mexico will offer handicrafts instead of food.
The festival costs 20 pesos to enter and dishes typically cost 80 pesos, said Mendoza. Tables and chairs are rented for the festival and set up around a pretty esplanade near the center’s administration building.
Guadalajara’s family social service agency, DIF, is behind the event, so proceeds will go for social assistance projects in the city.
The center is at Eulogio Parra 2539, 1 1/2 blocks from Lopez Mateos on Guadalajara’s west side, not far from the American School.