Doha: The eleventh edition of Qatar International Food Festival (QIFF) opened on Friday, 26 November. In a first for the festival, QIFF is set to run for three weeks before closing on the eve of Qatar National Day. The festival will be staged at Al Bidda Park against the backdrop of Doha’s skyline where over 140 vendors will serve culinary masterpieces.
Opening Hours
Weekdays: 3 p.m. – 11 p.m.
Weekends: 3 p.m. – 1 a.m.
While general admission to QIFF is free, 10 VIP areas around the festival can be reserved for QR 350 per two-hour booking. Each VIP area can accommodate eight people.
The festival will additionally host food trucks along a stretch of Corniche Road for eight days between 26 November and 3 December. There will also be fireworks displays at 8 pm on the weekends ie, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday throughout the course of the festival.
QIFF Cooking Theatre
QIFF will stage a daily cooking theatre with at least two demonstrations, events and competitions every day. The cooking theatre will feature celebrity chefs from the region including Dani García, Aisha Al Tamimi, Shams Al-Qassabi, William Dissen & Saif Rahman, Hervé Courtot, Hassan Al Ibrahim, Grenal Godinho, Aleksandre Ugrekhelidze, Arturo Mendez, Roberto Reatini, Aaj Fernando, Sergio Galaz, Hari Wahyudin and Santiago Guerrero.
Timings:
4 p.m. – 10:30 p.m. with 2+ demonstrations, events, and/or competitions per day
Digital Recipe Wall
A digital recipe wall will be set-up so that attendees can scan a QR code to access a web page app enabling them to share their favorite recipes.
Entertainment
QIFF is providing family entertainment throughout the festival. The entertainment features a mix of live music and DJs, roaming entertainment, mini golf, trampolines, a hot air balloon experience, carnival games, and much more. Multiple local and regional artists will also perform at the festival including Music Vending Machine, 11 Strings, Harget Kart, Pablo Discobar, Hadis, Soul Brother, REJAM, AFCENT Band, Charlie Porter Quintet, and AFCENT Band.
Chef’s Table
The Chef’s Table gives diners the opportunity to sit and eat with the chef who has cooked their meal. The following restaurants have confirmed their participation in the Chef’s Table:
– Hakkasan with Chef Ho Yiek Chung
– Scalini with Chef Roberto Apa
– Riyasat with Chef Grenal Godinho
– Isaan with Chef Somporn
For further details and bookings, contact the restaurants directly.
Arriving at Al Bidda Park
The organizers of QIFF recommend using the metro to access the festival. Attendees can choose from three commute options to access QIFF at Al Bidda Park.
1. Visitors can commute on Doha Metro to arrive at Al Bidda Station which is connected by both Green and Red lines. To facilitate the flow of visitors, metro will run until 3 a.m. during the duration of the festival.
2. There is also limited parking space available for cars at Al Bidda Park’s Car Park 5.
Zones
The festival will be split across five themed zones at Al Bidda Park and one at the Corniche:
– Al Bidda Park
– Oasis
– Pier
– Urban
– Market
– Garden
Al Bidda park will also have a Qatari Corner to give visitors a unique, traditional Qatari experience.
– Corniche
– QIFF Avenue
