Market-Fresh Lessons: Inside Araneta City’s Seafood Cook-Off

Culinary students battled out alongside their chef mentors at a seafood cook-off held at the Dampa in Farmer’s Market

There’s a paluto vendor at Dampa, Farmers Market who didn’t expect to become a shopping guide for a culinary competition. But that’s exactly what happened on Saturday, Aug.22, when Araneta City turned a corner of the market into a working kitchen for the Farmers Market Culinary Showdown: Seafood Edition, the centerpiece of the monthlong Araneta City Seafood Festival.

For parents scrolling past yet another “easy weeknight dinner” list, this one’s worth a second look. The competition wasn’t just about crowning a winning dish; it doubled as a real-time reminder of how much flavor is sitting in a local produce stall, and how a market trip with kids in tow can turn into an actual cooking lesson.

Dampa at Farmers Market was transformed into culinary kitchen battle

How the Cook-Off Worked

Three teams squared off, each pairing a professional chef mentor with culinary students:

• Team A: Chef Miguel “Miggy” Cabel Moreno, a 2026 Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand awardee, with students from Our Lady of Fatima University
• Team B: Novotel Manila and ibis Styles Manila executive chefs Rhenner Alair and Athena Tuble, with students from World City Colleges
• Team C: Celebrity chef Sharwin Tee, with students from Jose Rizal University

Binibining Pilipinas 2026 second runner-up Tracy Mae Sunio and celebrity chef Nathaniel Uy hosted the competition. The judging panel included Chefs Kalel Chan, Jocen Villongco, Roberto Pengson, and Gale Tan Sun, along with Ms. Jon Buenaflor.

In the first round, each team received a surprise ingredient that had to anchor its dish. The second sent them shopping—literally—through the market stalls, with a Php 2,000 budget and 20 minutes on the clock.

Each shopping party was limited to three people: the chef mentor, one student, and one Dampa vendor representative. They had to remain together throughout the market run. Once the ingredients were gathered, the teams had an hour to cook each round.

Students from World City Colleges, under the guidance of chefs Rhenner Alair and Athena Tuble focus on their cooking preparations

How the Teams Were Judged

The teams were evaluated using a 100-point scoring system in each round. Taste and flavor carried the most weight, while the remaining points measured how efficiently the teams worked with their ingredients, resources, and time.

Round One

The first round focused on how well each team incorporated its surprise ingredient into a complete dish:

• Taste and flavor: 30 points
• Main ingredient utilization: 25 points
• Box ingredient maximization: 20 points
• Technique and execution: 15 points
• Plating and presentation: 10 points

Round Two

The second round tested the teams’ ability to shop strategically and cook within real-world constraints:

• Taste and flavor: 30 points
• Market efficiency: 25 points
• Budget management: 20 points
• Technique and execution: 15 points
• Plating and presentation: 10 points

The judges weren’t simply looking for the prettiest plate. The competition rewarded teams that could make something delicious, use their ingredients wisely, stay within budget, and execute with control under pressure.

Chef Miggy’s team won the overall competition. Chefs Athena and Rhenner’s team took home the award for the “most Instagram-worthy” dish, while Chef Sharwin’s team was recognized for the most innovative creation.

Chef Miggy Moreno and his team pick up fresh vegetables at the Farmers Market

Why It’s Worth Watching If You Cook for a Family

Set in the middle of a working wet market, the competition placed professional technique beside the everyday produce and seafood parents already pass on a grocery run: squid, bangus, talong, kangkong—whatever the stalls happened to have that morning.

Watching the chefs build dishes around ingredients available that day offered a fairly direct answer to the question many home cooks face while unpacking a market haul: What am I supposed to do with this?

There was a teaching layer, too. Throughout both rounds, the mentors worked alongside the culinary students, explaining technique and decision-making under pressure. That dynamic—chefs narrating their choices instead of simply presenting a finished plate—translates surprisingly well to a home kitchen, especially with a curious child perched on a step stool nearby.

Diners at Dampa watched the whole thing unfold while eating their own meals. The competition felt less like a stage show than an open kitchen: something anyone could pass by, observe, and learn from.

A Month Long Celebration

The cook-off may have been the headline event, but the Seafood Festival runs through the end of August across the district’s dining, entertainment, and retail spaces,

From a SEA-nema film festival, shrimp pizza festival, to restaurant deals, families will surely have the chance to enjoy the Seafood Festival.

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