Not all cities can become a destination for lovers of sports. gastronomic tourism. Many different elements are necessary, and if you do not have them you have to work on them. In Córdoba they are natural, and you have to start working with … them to rise to their maximum power in that field.
Benjamín Lana, journalist, general director of Vocento Gastronomía, promoter of Madrid Fusion and one of the great national experts, within the cycle La Mirada Económica of ABC, which has been developed at the José Luis García Palacios cultural center, of the foundation Caja Rural del Sur.
‘Gastronomy as a tool of transformation in Córdoba’ was the title of his speech, in which he began with a summary of how to address visitors who are looking for something specific: «We don’t want more tourists, but best tourists».
This is achieved through elements such as sustainability, digital marketing, public-private collaboration, events and conferences and especially unique and authentic experiences. The destination has to put together a “360 degree” offer, that is, round, and Córdoba does not need to invent anything, because it has it: history and heritagenature and landscapes, experiences, gastronomy and unique products and culture and shows.
«My suggestion is to put them all to work at the same time. In some places they have to invent them and here they are,” said Benjamín Lana, who pointed to what he called “the virtuous circle of gastronomy. It is what includes tourism, history and culture, products, oenology and landscape and nature.
«Córdoba has wines that are unique throughout the world, such as those from the Montilla-Moriles Denomination of Origin, and also the landscape and nature merge with gastronomy. Have we got it sucked? Which would very expensive to build If it didn’t exist, that’s it,” he summarized.
He gave as an example the case of Copenhagen. The Danish capital is now “a reception center for millions of people, and it has not even needed a relevant social change, because a handful of restaurants have sufficed.”
It’s not that easy, however. Although Córdoba has “all the attributes” to be a “leader in gastronomy” and a great beacon of gastronomic tourism, important work is necessary. The kitchen is there and so is the raw materialbecause he insisted on the relationship with the primary sector and what is happening in the province.
«The vector is the search for authenticity. Gastronomy forces us to search for the truth and fakes fail.
Another case that you know well is that of Saint Sebastian, your natal city. It was a place with a lot of experience in tourism, and in Basque culture cooking is very important in every home.
From a certain point on, there were some very innovative, a generation with many concerns, almost half a century ago. “They built the new Basque cuisine, which is basically an update of tradition, to which they added elements,” he highlighted.
Thus, a way of understanding cuisine was forged that has been a standard for the city and that attracts many people. Benjamín Lana asked how much it would cost to do it now, from scratch, and they said that 200 million euros each year for five years.
There is a fundamental vector and it is the search for authenticity. «In a world in which we only have copies, gastronomy cannot be that way. Forces to search for TRUE, because we want authentic things. There may be fake, but they end up failing, because we don’t want to be treated like tourists,” Benjamín Lana insisted.
Authenticity can be sought through history, territory, identity, multiculturalism and the product, all on a global stage, and that is in Córdoba. Does it mean it is well positioned? They asked him to rate from 1 to 10 and he gave “a so highwithout reaching the notable, always taking into account its possibilities.
Noor’s example
That is, he would be a student from whom a outstandingbecause “it has more uniqueness and more strength and can achieve much more,” as stated this Tuesday in the La Mirada Económica cycle.
Benjamín Lana’s look is external and that is why he explained that he is associated with what is popular, sometimes unsophisticated, although it can also be excellent. «Andalusian gastronomy is known, in general, but not Cordoba. Lack visibility and an international brand, except for what Paco Morales represents,” he summarized.
He had words of praise for Noor, the restaurant that already has three Michelin stars based on a proposal in which, in addition to quality, the story has been important. «Is it tradition, is it fiction, or is it fiction about tradition? The important thing is that it works,” he asserted, after saying that “his story “It is serious and powerful, it is well managed, and it can serve as a figurehead.”
Your example, “a blessing,” can serve as an impulse for others. «In media, guides, pages, events and conferences it can result in visibility, because the heritage They are not only stones, but also immaterial. There is a lot of work done that could be put to play in the midfieldand not behind the scenes, to bring it out from time to time,” he highlighted.
The offer has to go through quality and there he once again gave the example of San Sebastián, where there is even a Public institute on the skewer, to control the quality “and that atrocities are not done.” Here the same will be necessary about tapas.
Among the change in mentality there must be the need for a different type of look at the rest of the sector, because the presence of other restaurants and more entrepreneurs who innovate has to help the sector and encourage. “Are not competence“But people who are in the same boat,” he recalled, and if the person next to them does well, “that pushes everyone up.”
The conference had a second part, in which the journalist Isabel Aguilarhead of Gurmé, ABC’s gastronomic portal in Andalusia, asked some questions and read those that the attendees had asked using QR codes.
