Restaurant Week focuses on tourism in the region

The organisation is also linking Restaurantweek to the broader development of Suriname’s tourism sector. With an eye on future developments, it believes it is important for the sector to prepare now.
“Our tourism sector should in principle start preparing with these kinds of small activities,” Dalen says.

According to the organisation, opportunities lie particularly in cultural and sports tourism. Events can also play a role in attracting more visitors to Suriname, it says. “Ecotourism remains important, but needs more time to have an impact on a larger scale,” Dalen said. In addition to existing family tourism from, among others, the Netherlands and New York, Suriname should also seek new tourism markets, he said. The focus is therefore mainly on the region, which together represents a market of tens of millions of residents.

The most recent edition of Restaurantweek, Island Escape, again showed growth, according to Dalen. “The evaluation shows that visitors gave more positive ratings, while the service provided by waiting staff was also assessed more favourably,” Dalen said. The organisation wants to further improve the upcoming editions.

This year’s theme, ‘Island Escape’, was intended to further enrich Surinamese culinary and cultural heritage. Participating restaurants presented new dishes and surprising fusion combinations, bringing together various cultural influences. According to Dalen, one of the highlights was the selection of the ‘Most Outstanding Participant’. That title went to Ogi Tapayaki, Dalen said. In addition, Med by Flavors received the award for Most Creative Menu.

The organisation has conducted visitor surveys since the beginning of Restaurantweek. The results are used to further improve subsequent editions. The most recent evaluation shows that Restaurantweek has also grown in visitor numbers.

The Island Escape edition coincided with Heritage Month. The organisation was asked to pay attention to cultural heritage within the event. Although the collaboration for this edition was established relatively late, discussions have now been held on a more structural partnership. During a next Heritage Month, the organisation wants to be more explicitly involved and contribute to the programme.
A continuing challenge for Restaurantweek is keeping the menus affordable. While a menu cost around SRD 900 during the first editions, the price is now around SRD 1,395.

Dalen says she takes into account the financial means of the average Surinamese public. By working with restaurants and partners, she tries to keep costs manageable as much as possible.
According to the organisation, Restaurantweek’s partners play an important role in this. They provide ongoing support for the event, allowing restaurants to better manage their operational costs and keep prices as reasonable as possible for visitors.

Although not everyone is reached yet, feedback shows that many visitors are satisfied with the opportunity to eat at different restaurants for a relatively attractive price over the course of a week.
The next edition of Restaurantweek will follow in November and the theme the organisation is already looking ahead to the next edition, to be held at the end of November. The theme will be ‘Festive Indulgence’.
Participating restaurants will again be given the freedom to the theme is ‘Ferstive Indulgence’. Restaurants will have the opportunity to interpret the theme in their own creative way. According to the organisation, the strength of Restaurantweek lies precisely in that freedom.

The theme will not be based on one specific product or dish. By choosing a broader theme, chefs can use their own creativity and create more variety in the menus.
The creator of the themes, Beverly Cadogan, draws inspiration from current developments and previous editions. For the upcoming edition, the festive period starting on 25 November also played a role. The combination of the festive character and the love of good food ultimately led to ‘Festive Indulgence’.
“You give people a theme and then they are free to interpret it in food with their own creativity,” Cadogan said.

She stresses that visitors can discover dishes during Restaurantweek that are created specifically for that period. The menus are temporary and do not necessarily return after the event week.
That temporary nature should encourage visitors to visit the restaurants specifically during Restaurantweek. The themes serve as a source of inspiration for chefs to think beyond their usual frameworks.
Cadogan is keen to see the chefs’ eventual interpretations. According to her, previous themes have shown that restaurants sometimes venture surprisingly far beyond the beaten track.

For the upcoming edition, she calls on the Surinamese community to continue supporting Restaurantweek.
The emphasis is on Surinamese culinary talent. During previous editions, including Chef Signature, chefs were explicitly given a platform to showcase their creativity and craftsmanship.
“They are our own Surinamese talents. It is our creativity, our people. And we simply have to continue encouraging and supporting that,” Cadogan said.

With the next edition of Restaurantweek in sight, the organisation wants not only to reintroduce visitors to special dishes, but also to contribute to the further development of Suriname’s hospitality and tourism sectors.