Two of the Filipino community’s most recognized names in Dubai’s culinary scene are taking their craft to a national stage, with Chef Nouel Catis and Chef David “Da Bo” Pamplona set to participate in IFEX Philippines 2026, the country’s biggest international food trade show, running May 21 to 23 at the World Trade Center Metro Manila in Pasay City.
The event, now in its 19th edition and organized by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM) under the theme “Tropical Flavors for the World,” draws over 10,000 trade professionals from more than 50 countries and serves as the Philippines’ primary B2B platform for food and beverage exports.
Catis, best known internationally as the Filipino pastry chef who developed the original recipe for the now-ubiquitous Dubai chocolate bar, has spent more than 16 years building his career in the UAE. He trained at the French Culinary Institute in New York and worked at some of the world’s most prestigious properties, including the Burj Al Arab. In 2024, he launched Sna’ap, his own artisan chocolate brand offering city-themed bars that blend Filipino and global flavor profiles. Last year at IFEX, he demonstrated desserts using Philippine ube and cacao — ingredients he has continued to weave into new collaborations with local brands including Auro Chocolate and Marcelo’s Microcreamery.
Pamplona, who goes by “Chef Da Bo,” co-founded Naimas Café & Bistro in Dubai in 2022 alongside three other Filipino expatriates. The restaurant, whose name is the Ilocano word for delicious, positions itself as a Pan-Asian dining destination in the Middle East. A four-time gold medalist at the Salon Culinaire Dubai and a finalist at the 2019 PRO Chef Awards, Pamplona has built his reputation on a cooking style that merges Filipino roots with Latin American and Pan-Asian technique. He has previously spoken about the significance of competing in Dubai’s internationally dense culinary environment. “I used to tell my chefs: ‘Be proud. We are Filipinos. We can’t always shy away. We are really good,'” he said.
Both chefs have described their Philippines appearances not strictly as professional engagements but as an expression of cultural responsibility toward the diaspora they represent. For Catis, whose earliest food memories trace back to watching baking programs with his mother in Dipolog and later selling her baked goods at school, the return to a Filipino stage carries personal weight. “Making the products accessible to the whole country — it’s a way for me to travel to the Philippines without traveling. So I just want to return the favor to the community, to the Filipinos,” he said.
IFEX Philippines 2026 also marks the formal expansion of its co-located Sustainability Solutions Exchange (SSX), now operating as a full exhibition and conference dedicated to sustainable and circular practices in the food sector.
