Blanca Manobanda, from the San Francisco market in Quito, and Omar Ortiz, from the Santa Clara market, delighted the public on Sunday with their specialties at the Ecuador stand, while on Saturday the Ecuadorian chef based in the British capital, David Reyes, gave a class on making fritada and figs with cheese.
Manobanda - the third generation of a stall selling sweets such as espumilla - and Ortiz - his father's successor in the artisanal production of empanada de morocho - won the 'The taste of Quito in London' competition in April, becoming ambassadors of the markets of the Ecuadorian capital to the British public.
At the Ecuador stand, one of the busiest at the event organised by the National Geographic Traveller Food magazine, the technical manager of Quito Tourism, Óscar López, explained the importance of gastronomy as a tourist attraction.
"Being in the center of the world on the equator and also crossed by the Andes mountains, we have a great variety of microclimates, there is sun every day of the year, which gives us an infinite number of ingredients to be able to make many typical dishes that we eat every day and that are very delicious.
According to López, Quito's 53 markets, eight of which have the greatest tourist potential, "are the most important" to be able to enjoy this experience. "When you visit a place, you always have to know the market to find out what the local people eat," he said.
A sensory adventure
Fresh fruit, juices, grains, potatoes, pork that is eaten in fritadas or hornado and spectacular chocolate are some of the products found in the capital, where the gastronomic scene is on the rise with an offer of traditional and avant-garde establishments.
Santiago Granda, Undersecretary of Promotion of the Ministry of Tourism of the Government of Ecuador, observed that "gastronomy is a very important part of the value chain of tourism as an industry, but it is also a sensory attraction."
"When you travel, you want the experience to be as authentic, real and immersive as possible, and Ecuador can still provide that, that unique, delicious gastronomy," he said.
With around 750,000 tourists a year currently, Ecuador is working to return to pre-pandemic levels, with the goal of receiving around 2 million visitors by 2025.
Granda acknowledged that there are exogenous challenges, such as competition from Asia, and internal ones, such as the perception abroad that there is political volatility in his country. In his opinion, this should not be an impediment to travel, since "it is very focused and does not affect tourist circuits."
The Undersecretary recalled that the Ecuadorian Ministry of Tourism always prioritizes "sustainable tourism, which involves communities, which highlights the entire value chain, which is not massive and which has the lowest possible environmental and cultural impact."
The main issuing market is the United States, followed by European countries such as Spain, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
Love as an ingredient
Before creating her famous foam for an expectant public, Manobanda spoke of the excitement she felt at being chosen to represent Ecuador, Quito and the San Francisco market, where she serves her clients "with much affection and love, every day of the week."
"It is exciting to participate (in the fair), to make known our roots, our culture, our gastronomy, which is phenomenal because Ecuador is unique and we are millionaires from belonging to this country, and we should feel proud," he said.
Ortiz, for his part, stressed that gastronomy "is one of the main aspects that people can learn about," particularly in his Santa Clara market.
"Visitors can enjoy exotic flavors, traditional food, but most of all, love, the culture of our people, because all the food prepared in Ecuador, in Santa Clara, or as I always say, in my empanadas de morocho, apart from the great flavor they have, they carry love," he said.
"That's what makes great food. If you don't love what you love to do, then it's not going to turn out well," he added.