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T&T Restau­rant Week has of­fi­cial­ly en­tered a new chap­ter in its evo­lu­tion—recog­nised for the first time as a na­tion­al fes­ti­val by the Min­istry of Trade, In­vest­ment and Tourism.

This new des­ig­na­tion el­e­vates Restau­rant Week be­yond the realm of a culi­nary event; it now stands shoul­der to shoul­der with icon­ic na­tion­al fes­ti­vals like Car­ni­val, re­flect­ing its deep­en­ing im­pact on tourism, em­ploy­ment, and eco­nom­ic de­vel­op­ment.

Founder Shi­ra Mo­hammed, who was born in Italy and came to this coun­try around nine, was in­spired by her home coun­try’s cul­ture of recre­ation­al din­ing. She en­vi­sioned a shift in Trinida­di­an so­cial habits—from lim­ing at bars and clubs to gath­er­ing around ta­bles for food, con­ver­sa­tion and con­nec­tion.