Asia Society Philippines launched its flagship culinary festival, Asian Eats 2026, on Friday, spotlighting the rich and diverse culinary heritage of the Asia-Pacific region. The festival is the latest in a growing roster of cultural diplomacy initiatives across Southeast Asia, where governments and civil society organizations increasingly use gastronomy to strengthen people-to-people ties and boost tourism.

"It is really to celebrate our shared culinary heritage with our neighbors in the Asia Pacific region," Asia Society Philippines' Natalie Christine "Ching" V. Jorge told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of the event.

"Food brings people together. We're happy to be able to organize this activity where everybody comes together to celebrate each other's cuisine," she added.

Asian Eats is a biennial gathering designed to foster cultural exchange, artistic collaboration, and deeper understanding among Asian communities and audiences in the Philippines. Asia Society, founded in 1956 by John D. Rockefeller III, operates centers across the Asia-Pacific and has long positioned cultural programming as a bridge between societies.

The three-day event, running from August 7 to 9 at Shangri-La Plaza, features 10 food booths representing Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Attendees can sample authentic dishes such as bánh mì from Vietnam, mango sticky rice from Thailand, kimbap from South Korea, and beef rendang from Indonesia, while enjoying cultural performances that celebrate music, dance, and artistic traditions from the participating embassies.

"We really work with the diplomatic community, and part of the work we do is really celebrating culture," Ms. Jorge said. "We celebrate culture through food, music, and art."

Corporate partners for the event — including Kikkoman, Century Pacific Food, Inc. through its Coco Mama brand, NutriAsia, GCash, and Highlands Coffee — also have dedicated booths at the festival.

In addition to food offerings and cultural performances, professional chefs will conduct cooking demonstrations to showcase the preparation of authentic Asian dishes.

Organizers expect strong attendance driven by weekend mall traffic.

"We expect the weekend mall goers to come and visit. Tomorrow, we will have schools that will be visiting," Ms. Jorge said. "Usually, it's mall traffic which runs to the hundreds of thousands per weekend."

"This is free for the public. They can come and enjoy the food that the different embassies and our partners have prepared," she added.

The festival comes in the wake of the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit, where President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. reaffirmed the Philippines' role as a "responsible and active partner" and vowed to push for inclusive and sustainable growth in the region. — Almira Louise S. Martinez