Sueca’s 60th International Paella Competition

The 60th edition of the competition took place on 13th September 2020, following semi-finals in Puerto Rico, Tasmania, Japan, Mexico and Denmark.

The 59th edition of Sueca’s International Paella Competition took place on September 15th 2019, and the winning restaurant was Fuente Cerrada from Teruel (shock, horror!)

The international semi-finals took place in Costa Rica, USA, France, Mexico and Peru.

The 58th Edition of Sueca’s International Paella Contest took place on September 16th 2018, and the winner was the Bon Aire restaurant of El Palmar.

The Contest dates back to 1961 and came about as part of the ‘Troballa de la Mare de Déu’ festival’s 600th anniversary celebrations.

In 1990, the event became international and was extended to Europe, United States and Japan. Since then Costa Rica, France and Peru have added to the International stature of the contest Once the participation abroad was consolidated, Sueca’s Valencian Paella recipe was certified and the Celebration of the International Competition was declared as an event of National tourist attraction.

In 2017 Asador Altamira from Alaquàs was proclaimed the main winner of the 57th edition of the Paella Valenciana de Sueca International Competition. This restaurant had participated in the popular gastronomic event for more than twenty years, winning different prizes in its history, including a second and third prize, as well as a ‘Best paella in the Valencian Community’ award.

The silver medal was awarded to the Alqueria del Pou restaurant in Valencia, while the bronze went to La Lluna in Valencia, Costa Rica.

The Japanese restaurant Anocado, the winner the international semi-finals in Japan, won the Best Paella Award from outside Spain.

The semi-finals are held all over the world, including France, California, Tasmania, Japan, Peru, Costa Rica and Mexico.

The judges take into account the cooking of the rice, the taste, the color, the symmetry of the ingredients, and of course the ‘socarrat’, the burnt part at the bottom of the pan, where the intense flavour is most concentrated.