Save your seat at the table! Register now!
Specific program timing, venues, and speaker details are subject to change. Check back often for updated details.
Most members of The Food Capitals network will arrive throughout the day.
(ExCom members only)
A working lunch and strategic meetings will take place during the afternoon.
(Optional, at own expense)
As tradition goes, members gather on the first evening for a relaxed and friendly dinner. A perfect opportunity to reconnect and welcome new participants in an informal setting.
Statutory session of The Food Capitals by Délice Network. Open to members of the network and invited guests only.
All member cities are invited to attend the General Assembly. The Executive Committee and Headquarters will present past achievements and future priorities. Members will vote on the 2025 Activity and Financial Reports. This session will also include working group moments for members to discuss specific topics and projects and begin elaborating together the next iteration of the network’s Strategic Plan for 2027-2030.
12:00-12:30 Vermut / Coffee Break
Open to members of the network and invited guests only
15:30-16:30 Free time/siesta
(Open to members and all registered participants)
In this opening session, the City of Castelldefels will showcase its gastronomy strategy, flagship projects and innovative public-private partnerships.
Official Welcome
Take a journey through the history of Castelldefels’ gastronomy and its impact on the city’s current strategies and projects. From 200 years of historic recipes to strong collaborations between local businesses and the restaurant and hospitality industry, Castelldefels will showcase how the city prioritizes gastronomy as a driver for tourism, promotion of local culinary identity, and international collaborations.
Chefs Beyond Borders is a curated culinary exchange embedded within the Food Capitals Summit. The 2026 pilot edition brings together chefs from Food Capitals member cities, pairing them with local Castelldefels chefs to co-create meals, share knowledge, and inspire the next generation.
Confirmed chefs so far:
18:00-20:30 Free time/chill by the sea
Venue: Castillo
10:30-11:00 Coffee & Registrations
Cities around the world aspire to be known for their food. They highlight their cuisine, chefs, restaurants and festivals in hopes of becoming the next great culinary destination. But they’re missing one key ingredient.
Great food alone doesn’t define a place. Identity does. In this keynote, Stewart explores why the strongest place brands are not built on ingredients alone, but on a clear sense of who they are. From geography and history to culture and community, food becomes the most powerful expression of place identity. When done right, it becomes their origin story. For cities seeking to elevate their culinary reputation, the challenge isn’t simply creating great cuisine. It’s revealing the story only they can tell.
12:00-12:30 Vermut/Coffee Break
Stewart Colovin will lead this workshop dedicated to helping city participants imagine their own food story and how best to position and shape their city’s food and culinary brand for promotion, tourism, and pride of place.
Venue: Castillo
Through inspiring and interactive pitches and presentations, members will share and exchange not only about best practices of innovative projects and initiatives, but also about “flops” and lessons learnt!
Presentations will be followed by themed tabletop discussions in a “World Café” format, where participants have a chance to move from table to table for deeper discussions and exchanges with presenters.
City members are invited to propose their presentation topics here: https://forms.gle/iwdURDbM13Fy5rcm8
Take a look at the Best Practices announced so far
More to be announced soon.
Participants are invited to a special gala dinner in celebration of the inaugural edition of the Summit, featuring tastings of co-created dishes from the international Chefs Beyond Borders program, the official welcoming ceremony of new member cities, and many more special surprises!
Participants will have the opportunity to visit a local farm in the Baix Llobregat Agricultural Park, a unique landscape reflecting the region’s commitment to seasonality, proximity, and strong links between agriculture and gastronomy.
Upon arrival, they will meet the producers and learn about the project, gaining insights into seasonal production and the local food ecosystem that connects farmers, restaurants, and initiatives in Castelldefels.
The experience will continue with a hands-on activity. In small groups, participants will harvest fresh ingredients and transform them into dishes alongside chefs, a moment of co-creation embodying the spirit of the Summit.
While participants prepare the starters, the chefs cohort from Chefs Beyond Borders will be learning how to prepare the host city’s signature dish: The Arros de Castelldefels.
To explore the story behind this dish, we invite you to listen to our dedicated Cities at the Table podcast episode: here.
Explore how the region invests in research and innovation to remain competitive while embracing sustainability, with a special focus on seaweed cultivation.
A final celebratory evening to conclude the Summit.
Additional activities and details will be shared soon.
Ready to experience Castelldefels? Register here!
Is your city interested in finding out more about becoming a Food Capital?
Contact us to explore how to attend as an "Observer City": contact@thefoodcapitals.com !
Photo credits: ©The Food Capitals, ©Cheese Naan, ©Castelldefels Capital Gastronómica, ©Oscar Rodbag, ©Consorci de Turisme del Baix Llobregat
