From November 3 to 5, Fira de Barcelona's Montjuïc venue will host a new edition of the Gastronomic Forum Barcelona (GFB), which consolidates itself as the great professional meeting point for the hospitality, gastronomy, and foodservice sector. This year, the event will focus on New Catalan Cuisine, at a key moment for the country's gastronomy.
This year, Gastronomic Forum Barcelona will also feature the largest exhibition offering in its history with more than 400 exhibiting companies, 10% more than in 2024. But this is not the only figure that explains the magnitude of the congress: more than 170 speakers, more than 100 showcookings and presentations, a total of 72 chefs, who accumulate 52 Michelin stars, and 26 pastry chefs, bakers, and charcutiers.
For the first time, the Forum will bring together all Catalan chefs with three Michelin stars, in addition to Ferran Adrià, in an edition that will coincide with Catalonia's nomination as World Region of Gastronomy 2025. It will be, according to the organization, "a historic moment" to highlight the culinary movement that has projected Catalan cuisine worldwide without losing its connection to the territory and local produce.
The Roca brothers, Jordi Cruz, Paolo Casagrande, the Torres brothers, Oriol Castro, Mateu Casañas, and Eduard Xatruch —along with Adrià and a new generation of emerging chefs— will lead presentations, demonstrations, and dialogues on the present and future of Catalan gastronomy.
Catalan chefs established abroad will also participate, such as Ramon Freixa (Madrid), Albert Franch (Helsinki), Mateu Villaret (Tokyo), or Xano Saguer (Mexico City), testifying to the global projection of contemporary Catalan cuisine.
The debate on the future of Catalan cuisine
Within the framework of the event, the Catalan Cuisine Symposium will be held, promoted by the International Institute of Gastronomy, Culture, Arts and Tourism (IGCAT) and the Generalitat de Catalunya, with the aim of offering a critical and transversal view on the current state of the sector. Figures such as Toni Massanés, Maria Nicolau, Albert Molins, or Colman Andrews, among other experts, will participate.
According to Pep Palau, GFB Content Director, "we are at a decisive moment for Catalan cuisine: tradition, local product, and territory regain prominence and consolidate us as an international benchmark."
A space for business, knowledge, and trends
Beyond its culinary appeal, the Forum is a space for connection among professionals, where contacts, business, and alliances are generated. As Josep Alcaraz, director of Gastronomic Forum Barcelona, highlights, "the Forum is not just a fair: it is a vital meeting point. Here professionals can speak face-to-face with producers, touch the product, taste it, and share concerns in a close environment."
The event is committed to a 360º vision of the sector, which includes food, beverages, technology, equipment, services, and innovation. In this edition, more than 30% of the exhibiting companies will come from outside Catalonia, with the incorporation of territories such as Burgos, Navarra, Cáceres, or Valladolid. Also noteworthy is the presence of more than 80 small producers grouped in the Espai Catalunya, organized by Prodeca and the provincial councils of Barcelona, Girona, and Lleida, as well as collective participations from Galicia, Menorca, A Coruña, the Barcelona City Council, and Mercabarna.
The exhibition will include an extensive program of activities dedicated to areas such as creative charcuterie, pizza, wine, bakery, and author's pastry, with the participation of the 21 Brix collective and chocolatier Lluc Crusellas. There will also be spaces such as the Forum Lab, dedicated to collective kitchens, the Mediterranean Diet, food design, healthy cooking, and hotel food & beverage.
During the event, the Cuiner Gastronomic Forum Barcelona 2025 Awards, the Innoforum Awards, the Josep Mercader Award, and competitions such as The Best Panettone in Spain, The Baker, the Pizza Bit Spain final, and The Catalans' Favorite Dish, organized by Cuina magazine, will be presented.
With this edition, Gastronomic Forum Barcelona reinforces Catalonia's role as a global gastronomic capital, projecting its cuisine, product, and talent as international benchmarks. "We want the exhibition to be a platform to showcase this new Catalan cuisine, which combines creativity and commitment to proximity," concludes the general director.