TCI Conch Festival Returns November 27-28

A Turks and Caicos tradition continues on November 27-28 with the 6th Annual Conch Festival. This year there is a full line-up of events and activities to celebrate the islands’ most famous delicacy, historical icon, and number one export. The popular beachside event will take place on Saturday afternoon, November 28, in the Blue Hills area of Providenciales. The marquee event of the weekend is the ‘conch-etition’, which pits the island’s best chefs against each other in a hotly-contested tasting competition judged by a panel of experts as well as the Festival attendees. More than 25 restaurants are expected to compete for the cash prizes and bragging rights this year and an entry fee of $20 gives Festival-goers a chance to sample all the dishes entered and cast a vote for Best in Show.

There will be special Conch Competitions for conch blowing and conch knocking, live music and a mojito contest. Plus the biggest prize of all will be the cash prize of $10,000 drawn at 5:30 on the day of the festival by the Rotary Club of Providenciales as part of its annual Pot-of-Gold raffle.

This year, a special pre- Festival event will be held Friday evening, November 27. Held on the grounds of the luxurious beachfront Somerset Resort on Grace Bay, the Friday evening event features local jazz musicians performing under the stars on the resort’s croquet lawn. While listening to smooth tunes, guests will enjoy a gourmet conch-themed dinner presented by host chef Lauren Callighen of The Somerset’s O’Soleil restaurant, who will be joined by guest chefs and Conch Festival judges, Dean Max award-winning chef and owner of several highly regarded restaurants in the US and the Caribbean; and Clay Conley, head chef at Azul in Miami’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

For more information, go to www.conchfestival.com

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TCI Conch Festival Returns November 27-28