New DVD features Belize's top chefs
Belize is among the hottest of the
region's tourism destinations, and
what that also means is that all
things Belizean, including the food
we eat, is considered trendy.
Capturing the spirit of that
culinary wave is a new DVD
appropriately titled "Taste Belize".
Patrick Jones, Reporting
The DVD, which was produced by Belize City based
Oxa Productions, contains over a hundred minutes of
carefully edited video material, offering a unique
insight to Belizean cuisine. Project Manager Brent
Toombs says the idea was to take Belizean staples
and show people new ways of using the ingredients to
create exotic recipes.
Brent Toombs, Producer, Taste Belize
"Taste Belize is an instructional cooking video that's
got ten
of the best chefs in Belize showing you on camera how
to
prepare one of their uniquely Belizean recipes. As
well, there
is twenty other recipes that are in text form that you
can
read off the screen, or if you have a DVD drive in your
computer you can put the disk in the computer, access
the
electronic cook book that's attached to the disk and
print off
the recipes so you can keep them in your kitchen, keep
them handy."
And it's clear that the producer has done his
homework. Apart from the mouth-watering recipes,
Toombs says the DVD also contains bonus material
that will be attractive not only to the target
audience,
but anyone who wants to enjoy the taste of Belize
long after they have departed our shores.
Brent Toombs
"Because we know that primarily tourists will buy this
DVD
and take it back with them to Europe, or Canada, the
United
States, wherever, we've put a lot of material on the
DVD
that will act as promotion for Belize. There is a
thirteen-minute video that takes you all over Belize,
from
the north, the south, the cayes, the west. And the
reason
being that a lot of people who buy this will be cruise
ship
tourists who are only here for one day and will only
see a
very small part of Belize and we want them to come back
and maybe spend two weeks or three weeks the next time
and have their whole vacation in Belize."
And even if they can't come back right away, they can
experience some special dishes with names like Chilli
Seared Snapper Towers, Rolled Venison Steak and
Cayo Lobster Salad. Each is prefaced with a short
narrative about the featured resort.
Brent Toombs
"I've always had an interest in cooking and I have
always
thought about trying to do some kind of travel and
cooking
combination show of some sort. And I was just trying to
work out the ideas of how that could possibly be done
here
in Belize and then this idea of an instructional
cooking video
just came to me. I started talking to a few hotel
operators
that I knew about the idea and they were quite
enthusiastic
about it and talked to a few people in the travel
industry
about it and everybody thought this is a pretty good
idea
and you should try it. I think it will sell."
Patrick Jones, for News 5.
Speaking of selling, Taste Belize is available at the
ten
resorts featured in the cooking segments, as well as
gift shops in Belize City, or online at
www.tastebelize.com. The DVD is being offered for an
introductory price of fourteen ninety-five U.S. until
Christmas Day. After that the price will be nineteen
ninety-five.
AmbergrisCaye.com 
