There was a desire to go out on the streets again, and the Mitjafava Fest in Poble Nou de Benitatxell has been a great demonstration of this. Last weekend, hundreds of residents and visitors enjoyed an incredible atmosphere thanks to the numerous gastronomic and leisure proposals in which the fava poblera was the undisputed protagonist.
The party kicked off on Friday afternoon with the opening of the craft fair with a parade by the Colla La Llebetjà. Later, the writer and journalist Empar Ferrer from Poble presented her latest children's story: 'Bragat, el gat influencer del Puig Llorença'. The act was very well received by the public, who filled the Social Center to meet one of the most mediatic characters of El Poble Nou de Benitatxell. Afterwards, the author signed several copies for the attendees, and the little ones were able to take photos with the stuffed version of Bragat and his friend Maria of him.
The night continued with a great gastronomic event. The chefs Moncho Riquelme, from Casa Riquelme Alicante, and Yhoana and Cynthia Gavilanes, from Chola Gastro Jávea, offered a showcooking in which they prepared elaborations with fava poblera in its different variants: tender broad bean and dry broad bean.
On Saturday morning there was also a great atmosphere in the streets La Pau and Mayor with the lunch offered by the Music Band, the workshop for boys and girls of Carmencita Spices, the interactive farm and the traditional dances of the Grup de Danses Morro Falquí .
In the afternoon, the Rock&Fava Festival enjoyed great success in terms of participation in Plaça de les Pesqueres. It was a great evening of tapas and live music with the groups Marcel el Marcià, Blat, Tesa, Smoking Souls and Arsenic.
Yesterday, Sunday, broad beans were present in the gastronomic area with the Tapifaves Festival and the contest for the longest broad bean with the most gallons. A 36-centimeter broad bean, from Gabriel Pastor, won the award for the longest fava, and, as for the award for the fava with the longest gallons, there was a tie between Francisco Llobell and Pura Bolufer thanks to two beans with 8 gallons .
Another attraction was the home-made and traditional wine competition organized by the Associació de Veïns. The jury declared Pura Bolufer the winner of the white wine, with José Bolufer coming second. For muscatel wine they went to Pepe Vidal and there was a tie for second prize between Francisco Gilabert and Miquel Almenara. The red wine awards went to Andrés Beltrán in first place and to Raúl Andrés in second place. And in the case of wine, it turned to Pep Bolufer and Toni Catalá. The City Council congratulated all the participants for the quality of their wines and for keeping alive the tradition of artisanal wine in the municipality.
The concert by the Oller i Guerra group completed an unbeatable morning that vindicated the most indigenous products of the municipality. A gastronomic showcase in which restaurants in the municipality reinvented cuisine by creating tapas, in some cases from geographies as far away as Asia or Mexico, with broad beans as the main ingredient. The favero tapas did not disappoint anyone. Everyone repeated. The restaurants surprised with innovative tapas and demonstrated their many possibilities.
