Hospitality shows add new appeal to Da Nang’s culinary tourism
DNO - Da Nang’s tourism sector is embracing a new wave of “Hospitality Show”, a performance-based experience centered on culinary service, which is designed to bring local art, history, and culture closer to visitors. This innovative approach is expected to contribute to enhancing the city’s tourism appeal and elevating the local culinary brand.
Turning art into an experience
In late September, the Da Nang Art Theater unveiled a show titled “Khai Ha Nhat Thong Yen”.
As part of the “Di San Da Yen” (Heritage Banquet) project, the show combines a culinary experience with a live performance of traditional Vietnamese arts, including Tuong (classic drama), folk opera, dance and music to recreate the construction of the Vinh Te Canal and the life of mandarin Thoai Ngoc Hau.
The highlight of the show lies not only in the performance itself but also in the way the setting is designed.
Inspired by royal court aesthetics, the stage features an artificial canal running alongside the banquet tables, wooden boats and a lighting system that creates an atmosphere reminiscent of a bygone era.
Through three performance segments, audiences follow the journey from the arduous early days of canal construction to the prosperity brought by the opening of the waterway, culminating in a ceremony to bestow a name and host a royal banquet.
According to Mr. Nguyen Nho Khiem, Chairman of the Da Nang Union of Literature and Arts Associations, what makes “Khai Ha Nhat Thong Yen” particularly noteworthy is not only its combination of various traditional art forms but also its immersive setting, which makes audiences part of the story.
Rather than maintaining the conventional separation between the stage and the audience, the show creates a banquet setting where guests are served tea and wine, take part in interactive activities and become directly immersed in the unfolding story.
Following a similar trend, Brilliant Restaurant launched a dining show titled “Vietnam Mot Dai Gam Hoa” (A Journey Through the Beauty of Vietnam) in October. It offers diners an opportunity to explore the country’s regional cultures through dance performances and cuisine.
The artistic journey showcases the distinctive cultural characteristics of the Northwest, the Northern Delta, the former imperial capital of Hue, the Central Highlands, the Dong Thap Muoi region and Da Nang.
According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Khanh Linh, Director of Brilliant Restaurant, the idea for the program came from the restaurant’s experience serving international guests. Through welcoming overseas tour groups, the restaurant recognized their strong interest in traditional music and local culture.
The program features nearly 20 performers, supported by a technical and operations team, and is scheduled to serve guests every Friday and Saturday evening.
From experiences to distinctive tourism products
According to Mr. Ly Dinh Quan, Chairman of the Da Nang Culinary Culture Association (DCCA), cuisine is an accessible gateway for visitors to discover a culture. While history requires time to explore and music calls for appreciation, food can make an immediate impression from the very first taste.
When combined with stories of history, music and traditional arts, food goes beyond satisfying dining needs to become part of a multisensory cultural experience.
Shows such as “Khai Ha Nhat Thong Yen” and “Vietnam Mot Dai Gam Hoa” demonstrate how businesses in Da Nang are gradually shifting from simply providing food and beverage services to developing experiential products. This approach also helps enrich the city’s nighttime tourism offerings, encourage longer stays and give visitors more reasons to return.
Elevating Da Nang’s culinary brand
According to Mr. Nguyen Duc Quynh, Chairman of the Da Nang Hotel Association and General Manager of Furama Resort Da Nang, amid increasingly intense competition among destinations, cuisine should be positioned as a strategic tourism product capable of attracting visitors, increasing spending and encouraging repeat visits.
Da Nang has an advantage in its diverse range of signature dishes, including Quang noodles, cao lau noodles, Hoi An chicken rice, pork rolls with rice paper and Central Vietnamese seafood.
Apart from preserving and improving the quality of local cuisine, the city should develop diverse culinary spaces that bring together different food cultures, from Vietnam, Japan and the Republic of Korea to Europe and the Middle East.
To create a stronger impetus for development, restaurants, travel companies, artists, farmers, craft villages and management agencies need to work together to develop and promote culinary products.
This is not merely a way to renew food and beverage services but also an opportunity for Da Nang to develop a more sophisticated cultural and culinary tourism ecosystem, strengthen its competitiveness and gradually realize its ambition of becoming an international culinary destination in the region.