We Need More MICE Venues
MICE stands for Meetings, Incentive Travel, Conventions, and Exhibitions. It corresponds to a specialized sector of tourism that requires higher standards in terms of services and facilities.
Food is one of the main pillars of the tourism industry and we want guests to recall lovely memories of what they ate in Cebu. I and some friends dined in three different restaurants the last three Sundays to experience first-hand what visitors would eat and the facilities they have. There was this outlet serving Takoyaki in a mall, and the squid ball was nearly raw. I asked myself, how the cook could fail to cook this Japanese dish properly because this is what he does, repeatedly all day.
We went to a restaurant that serves smoked meats. At the entrance, I could smell the tantalizing smoke and I ordered smoked beef. The plating was excellent with nice sides, but the beef itself was overcooked.
We ate at a Korean restaurant where guests cook their food on a tabletop grill. We ordered Bulgogi, and it was very tasty. I took a break and went to the toilet and nearly fell because the floor was slippery with all that oil-laden smoke on the floor.
Last Tuesday, I was invited to a science seminar sponsored by Zoetis Philippines Inc. at the Taste of Mandarin. It has been three years since I joined a science seminar and a decade since I ate at the Mandarin.
Zoetis Philippines Inc. Territory Manager Jeremy Custodio invited the clinical staff of Cebu Animal Doctors’ Hospital and the Managers, Dondi Yap and Jun Chua Espinosa to a Zoom lecture series on animal health. It was a timely seminar because I want to upgrade my education on small animal medicine.
The food was straightforward: Birds Nest Soup, Roast Chicken, Sweet & Sour Fish Fillet, Lumpia Shanghai, Pork Chops with Black Bean Sauce, Noodles, Fried Rice, and Lo Mai Chia (glutinous rice dumpling topped with peanuts & sugar). The best-tasting dishes were the roast chicken, fish fillet, and dessert while the rest were average.
My friends have narrated MICE activities in Thailand, Taiwan, Hongkong, Vietnam, and Singapore. The food memories they carried home were all pleasant and food prices were reasonable except in Singapore where food was expensive. Our food here is at bargain prices but we need to cook food properly to forge ahead with the competition.