Local, international visitors check out final Taste weekend

The final weekend of the 23rd Taste of the Marianas Festival and Beer Garden again drew hundreds of both island residents and international visitors to the Garapan Fishing Base, just in time as the Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games was winding down with a closing ceremony last Saturday.

This closing weekend of the Taste of the Marianas food festival last Friday, Saturday, and Sunday also saw the presence of visiting U.S. Navy sailors and U.S. Marines, who relished the opportunity to see local sights and taste the local cuisine.

Jordan Gilchrist of Michigan, who did not specify his rank in the U.S. Navy, described the festival as “pretty amazing.”

“I mean we didn’t know what to expect, coming in to Saipan—we’ve never been here—so coming here and just having this thing going on…and all the food around, it’s actually been pretty good, really amazing food. It’s actually kind of cool to see [an] island come together like a family [for] a cool event like [this],” he said.

The event was also attended by many NMPG athletes. Palau delegate River Thomas found the whole setup—the lights, the booths, and each business doing its own vibe—“wonderful. I feel like a lot of care was put into it. And the music is amazing. The food is amazing. And the people are so nice, like I feel so welcomed, like there should be Taste of the Marianas every night!”

According to Marianas Visitors Authority’s community project manager Martin Duenas, the food festival, usually held every Saturday in the month of May, was moved to June so it would coincide with the Pacific Mini Games and give visiting athletes, technical officials, and media a taste of the local culture.
Thomas agrees that it was a great idea. “I heard it was supposed to be earlier but you guys moved it, so the athletes can appreciate it. I think that was awesome [because] I’m having the best time at the Taste of the Marianas.”

Faye Ghemu, who is the Chef de Mission for the Solomon Islands national team, said this was her first time to attend a food festival “and it’s been great getting to taste the variety and the different kinds of food you guys have to offer here in the Marianas, and it’s been a wonderful experience to be able to come to the Games and then also to experience the Taste of Marianas. …I’ve tasted some food flavors that I haven’t had before so that’s amazing!”

Many at the festival also appreciated that they could attend the occasion mask-free. “It’s amazing. You feel freed,” said Christian Gelacio of Chalan Kanoa; other individuals throughout the event echoed the same sentiment.

The Taste of the Marianas was also a great platform to promote new businesses and restaurants. Tbar is one such business. The café in Garapan had its first appearance at the Taste of Marianas this year.
“We’ve always just been there at the café and we’ve had our popularity there, but we’ve never gotten the chance to expand to big event like Taste of the Marianas; and since we had Taste last weekend we actually had new faces come into the café, so it’s a great way to build that relationship with our customers and get a lot more people coming,” said Kristan Razon Isip of TBar.

Various food competitions, held at the venue also piqued the interest of many. One competition featured Japan’s Sachiyo Masubuchi. Masubuchi won first place and $500 for finishing a 5-lb sukiyaki dish within the whopping time of nine minutes and 25 seconds. Second-place winner George Cabrera got $250 and Nilo Jr. Dino placed third and got $150. Regino Ben in fourth place took home $100. Other competitions that took place during the event included the Kadun Pika, and Eskabeche contests.

This year’s Taste of the Marianas took place on the weekend of June 17, 18, and 19, and on June 24, 25, and 26, 2022.