Ulaanbaatar, April 9, 2025 /MONTSAME/. Organized by the Governor’s Office of the Capital City of Mongolia, the “UB Food” Festival, aimed at boosting tourism and introducing various international cuisines, opened on April 8, 2025, and will continue until April 14, 2025.

This week-long Festival is being held for the 11th year. The Festival’s main highlight is the dishes prepared by 10 master chefs from Uzbekistan, who are offering their national dishes, including plov, shashlik, samsa, and kazan kebab. Also, monks from the Gandantegchinlen Monastery are preparing traditional noodle soup in a one-ton cauldron, promoting Mongolian food culture to visitors.

During the Festival, Governor of the Capital City of Mongolia and Mayor of Ulaanbaatar City Nyambaatar Khishgee remarked, “We will organize the ‘UB Food’ Festival during the second week of April every year to introduce citizens and tourists to Mongolian and international culinary cultures. Tourism season in Mongolia peaks during June and July. So, we are aiming at organizing major international events such as the ‘UB Food’ Festival to attract tourists in April and May, when tourism is relatively low. Additionally, will survey citizens about which national cuisines they would like to see featured in future years.”

Director of the Ulaanbaatar City Tourism Department D. Batsukh said, “This Festival is being held for the 11th time. Cities around the world organize food festivals to promote their national cuisines, offering people fun and meaningful leisure activities. Following that model, we hold this Festival in Ulaanbaatar, and it has become something people look forward to. This year’s special feature is the participation of 10 professional Uzbek chefs who are cooking Uzbek dishes. Meanwhile, relevant agencies are ensuring public safety and peace throughout the event.”

Visitors heading to the 10,000-person tent must first purchase a ticket for MNT 5,000. This allows them to observe how shashlik, plov, samsa, and kazan kebab are prepared, enjoy free samples, and take part in contests. To make the Festival authentic, the Uzbek chefs brought everything they needed, including pots, rice, spices, and other ingredients, directly from Uzbekistan. Each pot holds between 300 and 800 liters, meaning they can cook up to 1,000 liters of food at a time.

A single pot can cook 500 kg of plov, using 100 kg of meat, 100 kg of rice, and 40 liters of oil, plus raisins and spices.

Head Uzbek Chef Kulidjanov Sadik noted, “We have come to cook and introduce Uzbek national dishes to the people of Mongolia. Today, we are ready to serve four dishes, which are plov, samsa, shashlik, and kazan kebab, to visitors in Ulaanbaatar City. Plov is the main dish of Uzbek cuisine, and it’s impossible to imagine a wedding or festival without it. We also tried making Mongolia’s national dish, noodle soup (lapsha), and really liked it.”

Sixty-year-old Sadik has worked as a chef for 30 years and holds a Level VI International Chef’s Certificate.

This year’s “UB Food” Festival is unique, as it highlighted one specific national cuisine. By purchasing an MNT 5,000 ticket, visitors can sample dishes for free. In previous years, restaurants operating in Mongolia offered 10–40 percent discounts to promote their food during the Festival. Moreover, while it was traditionally held in the summer or fall, this year marks the first time the festival is taking place in the spring.

During the “UB Food” Festival, there will be a DJ performance, an Open Mic session, “Baga Toirog” arts performance, Uzbek merchandise fair, Ulaanbaatar Theatre performance, “Anir” pop orchestra concert, live music shows, and various food competitions, providing entertainment for young people and visitors.