Experience Filipino culture through food, dance and community at the Bayanihan Fiesta

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah's Filipino community is getting ready to celebrate Filipino American History Month with the Bayanihan Fiesta, a free event made to share Filipino culture, food and traditions with the Utah community.

Jive Bullock of the Philippine American Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Utah said the event will provide an immersive cultural experience.

"It's definitely going to be a sensory experience," Bullock said. "As Filipino Americans and Filipinos living here in the U.S., we take a lot of pride in our heritage, and we take our hospitality very seriously."

Food will be one of the fiesta's main attractions. Mama's Kitchen owner Cherry Reoch shared several traditional Filipino favorites that will be available at the celebration.

"We have the best of everything," she said.

Reoch highlighted halo-halo, a popular shaved-ice dessert, lumpia and several different kinds of rice cakes.

"The puto is so soft and fluffy. Like, sometimes it melts in your mouth," she described. "The pichi pichi right on top has fresh coconut and it's really good."

Another Filipino staple you can expect is pancit, a traditional noodle dish, which Reoch said "actually symbolizes long life, so we always have it every celebration."

Beyond food, the fiesta aims to support local Filipino-owned businesses and celebrate the spirit of bayanihan, a Filipino tradition of community cooperation. Bullock explained that the term originally referred to neighbors working together to move a house from one location to another.

"In the present day, it reflects how much of the Filipino value of being able to come together communally in solidarity, helping people without expecting anything in return," she said.

The festival will also feature cultural performances. The Gracielou Cultural Dance Group has been spreading Filipino culture through dance across Utah since 2018.

This story originally aired on KSL TV and has been reformatted for a digital audience using artificial intelligence.

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