By Chinedu Onyejelem

Dublin’s Blanchardstown is the venue of the first annual ‘Come and Eat’ initiative to celebrate World Food Day 2017.

According the latest census, the Dublin 15 area in the west of the city has the greatest concentration of ethnic groups in all of Ireland – and therefore adequately suited to host the event, according to its organisers.

“Food plays an important role in the lives of families in most cultures,” says Rekindle Talent, which is hosting the event subtitled ‘Tracking Culture Through Food’ on Monday 16 October.

“It is associated with hospitality and expression of friendship. Food is connected to social contexts, cultural values and identities. With food, we can tell who we are, and where we come from.”

Rekindle Talent adds that a common short-cut to understanding culture is to sample its cuisine.

Speaking more about the event taking place at St Brigid’s Community Centre, Dotun Adegbesan of Rekindle Talent told Metro Éireann that people of all age and background, including pupils from a number of local schools, are expected to grace the occasion.

On the significance of the initiative, Adegbesan said: “We are all familiar with Chinese food today; we don’t bother with speaking Chinese or even wearing their fashion, but we integrate with Chinese by eating their food and we get to know them more by eating their cuisine. 

“We believe that we can get to know more about people across the globe, especially different ethnic groups in Ireland through their food.”

Adegbesan said food from about 16 countries – “including our host Ireland, as well as Nigeria, Lithuania, Brazil, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Malawi, Morocco, Uganda, Zimbabwe, India, Pakistan, and Russia” –will be showcased on the day.

“Food plays a vital role in integration of new communities in any society,” he said, adding that members of the public can also visit two local restaurants in the area, Heritage Food Confectionaries and Biryani House, for a paid sample of African and Indian foods respectively.

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