Party Time

Fine Wines & Food Fair is a party honouring gastronomy, wines and hospitality.  With each edition it sees the bar raised and, the 4th edition, was truly memorable.  All we can say about the event does not do it justice, you have to live it and get in the party mood.  Come party with us!

Team Spirit

Invisible service with confident steps. For nine solid days, we witnessed the service ceremonies, from the BBQ Cookout at Herdade dos Grous, to the Atlântico and Ocean restaurants at VILA VITA Parc - the main stages of this food and wine show -, to Praia Dourada on the beach, on the closing day. 

Always with the same endeavour, the attention, the precision, the smiles, the nerves, sometimes, revealing the responsibility of participating in such a grand production. 

The host, Managing Director Kurt Gillig’s welcome speech, and the acknowledgements at the end of each evening, with a sense of “mission accomplished”.  The bill, some of the greatest names in world cuisine and excellence-seeking wine-makers.  A grand spectacle, each one playing his part with honour.  The final applause.  Bravo!

Dress code

From the country style barbecue in the Alentejo plains, a casual lunch around the fire, to the chicest cocktail dresses for the Michelin Star dinners, the Fine Wines & Food Fair was a real red carpet. The Kitchen Party was the highlight of the week – 17 world renown chefs, the best sommeliers and producers from around the world, perfectly paired amid the kitchen, the bars, the restaurants and the gardens. Upon arrival, the must accesssoire: an apron. Dressed from head to toe, it’s time to give good use to the fork-spoon, hold the glass, taste the delicacies, the cheeses, the caviar, the chocolates, taste again and refill the glasses.  May the party begin! 

Kitchen Party

A DJ in the kitchen. Sharp knives for the cheese, the ham, the fish. The risotto and the xarém must be stirred.  The fiery grill for the red prawns.  Pinces delicately adorn plates with flowers and aromatic herbs.  The pop of each bottle opening is almost like an opera aria.

Plates dance from hand to hand.  Not everything is what it seems: a strawberry tarte that is a foie gras starter, the bao napkin that is edible. Cocktails and dreams, and ice cubes to cool the mood. Like someone that draws a map, there is no order in this menu designed by each diner.

The expressions in each spoonful reveal the surprise of flavours of Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Japan… We’re all discoverers giving new worlds to the world. 

Hey DJ, don’t stop the music!

The band surprises the diners and invites them to follow the rhythms as the night moves on.  Light and shadows.  Different beats in different spaces.   Pure entertainment.  Suddenly, the sound that announces the opening of the dance floor.  A saxophone defies the DJ, mixing with the hits.  Bodies follow the music. All night long!

Praia Dourada

A mirage, a turban on the beach, another place.  The hot wind blows from the sea, it comes from Africa, from beyond the horizon.  Chakall, the Argentinian chef that travels the world, prepares lunch today. Music is playing and it tastes like summer, caipirinha, piña colada and mojito.

With our feet in the sand, a fishing boat and the endless sea.   Is there a better scenery to end the party?