Dinagyang food kiosks to showcase Maasin bamboo

By Emme Rose Santiagudo

More than 300 food and beverage kiosks for the Ilonggo Food Festival will showcase the booming bamboo industry of Maasin, Iloilo.

Phillipp Chua, chairman of the Committee on Kiosks, said they tapped the local government unit (LGU) of Maasin for the construction of 330 kiosks for Dinagyang 2020.

“The design of the 330 kiosks will be made by the town of Maasin para mashowcase man ang ila craftmanship,” Chua said in a press conference on Monday.

Maasin Mayor Francis Amboy said 100 carpenters are currently working on the Dinagyang kiosks.

The mayor added that around 3,000 bamboos will be used for the construction of kiosks inspired by the bahay kubo design.

“Each kiosk has a length of 4 meters by 4 meters and height of 7 feet. One kiosk costs about P3,500,” Amboy said in a phone interview Monday.

Amboy said they signed a P1.2-million contract with the Iloilo Festivals Foundation Inc. (IFFI) for the kiosks.

“It will include the construction of the kiosks and its installation at the venue. It will all be uniform with their respective names,” he said.

The mayor said the project is a huge opportunity for the town of Maasin to showcase its products as it poises to become the bamboo capital of the country.

“Dako gid na ang epekto, maka-create employment and second we could showcase our product. It is an opportunity nga kami ang gin-tap nga ma-provide sang kiosko sa Dinagyang so proud man kami nga diri ginkuha ang produkto,” he said.

The town of Maasin develops and maintains a 5,000-hectare bamboo plantation.

Meanwhile, the Ilonggo Food Festival which will feature around 500 kiosks, will provide a gastronomical experience to Dinagyang revelers from January 24-26, 2019.

The 330 accredited kiosks of IFFI will be situated at the Downtown Triangle or the Iznart, Aldeguer, Ledesma, and Guanco, streets in City Proper while Arsenal area will be reserved for the “Kaon Ta, Iloilo” Facebook group.

Aside from the above-mentioned groups, Chua said the Iloilo Hotel Restaurants & Resorts Association (IHRRA) and the Association of Barangay Captains in City Proper district  (ABC) will also set up their kiosks at the streets of Delgado and Solis respectively.