Chefs André Cruz (Feitoria, 1 Michelin star), João Sá (Sála, 1 Michelin star), and José Pereira (Õtaka, Ponta Delgada) headed to the first island to be discovered by the Portuguese in the Azores to discover the flavors of the island of Santa Maria, as part of an initiative by Marca Açores (Azores Brand).
Intending to survey regional traditions, recipes, and products, the chefs toured the area, making contact with producers, cooks, entrepreneurs, and restaurateurs, with whom they shared techniques and information on how to enhance this gastronomic heritage.
In fact, the island of Santa Maria was the scene of an exploration and training program dedicated to the enhancement of traditional cuisine, with a survey of endogenous products and popular recipes, aimed at perpetuating traditions and increasing the visibility of the island and its gastronomic heritage.
This initiative, by the Regional Secretariat for Agriculture and Food through the Azores Brand Management and Promotion Office, with the support of Visit Azores, brought together these chefs from Lisbon and José Pereira, from the Õtaka restaurant in São Miguel, on a journey to discover the customs of the island.
Between July 8 and 11, the chefs visited producers, local cooks, restaurants, and small business owners to discover the best of what is produced in Santa Maria.
Refining traditional recipes and getting to know the island’s identity products allowed for a sharing of experiences, from both sides, which also included training sessions led by the chefs who provided new techniques and ideas for enriching this gastronomic, cultural, and agricultural legacy.
“Identifying the agri-products of the Azorean islands and promoting them outside the territories has been a task we’ve been working on as part of the Azores Brand, constantly highlighting the high quality of the Azorean product. As part of this responsibility, the initiative took place on the island of Santa Maria, which allowed for greater recognition of the value of Santa Maria’s gastronomic and agricultural heritage, with three professional chefs in contact with the population and those responsible for the production of products certified with the Azores Brand and local restaurants, such as “Ponta Negra”, the first restaurant to receive the Azores Brand certification on the island of Santa Maria”, explains António Ventura, Regional Secretary for Agriculture and Food.
During the initiative, visits were made to various points of interest, focusing on the quality of the local product, its authenticity, and the very sustainability of its production, to raise awareness of the need to maintain its unique characteristics.
“We found unique products, such as turnips, which have nothing to do with our turnips, and which have a lot of potential in the kitchen,” says Chef André Cruz.
“It’s important to raise awareness of these local products and ensure that they are more widely known outside the region, while also promoting their production, which is important for the island’s economy. Over the days, we talked to the local population and learned from their stories why they use these products, their traditions, and the deep-rooted practices that ultimately led us to create a menu for the final dinner, which combined all this popular wisdom with our knowledge as professional chefs and our vision of how to make the most of each product. There’s no doubt that in my case, for example, I’ll be bringing a bit of this island to Feitoria,” he adds.


Born in Santa Maria, chef José Pereira, who currently lives in São Miguel, had the opportunity to take stock of the island’s current gastronomic offer and to understand how his colleagues viewed these experiences.
“It’s very interesting to see how those who come from abroad see potential in products that we are so used to that we always prepare them in the same way. As a local, I’m proud to see how our cuisine, such as the Soups of the Holy Spirit of Santa Maria, which are so important to us, or even Caldo de Nabos, which we’ve known since we were children, can be given a new approach while maintaining the authenticity of the flavors. I believe that the island has a lot to explore and make known to those who visit us, with a special emphasis on the quality of what is made here. The Azores Brand has an important role to play in promoting and raising awareness of the importance of not losing our identity.”
Another of the highlights of the visits was the recovery of the tradition of viticulture, with grape varieties such as Verdelho, Arinto dos Açores or Terrantez do Pico, among others, which is being encouraged among the local population, to increase existing production and invest in wine as a product of excellence, with a wider offer, especially to the tourist demand on the island.
With its own culture dating back more than 600 years, the vineyards are planted on the hillsides, on terraces that only man can access, subject to extreme conditions.
Although this tradition dates back more than six centuries, the island of Santa Maria only saw its first wines certified with the Azores Geographical Indication on May 18th of this year: a white made from the noble Azorean grape variety Verdelho, a white made from red grapes and a rosé.
“Without a doubt, what surprised me most was the quality of the wines. I’m passionate about wine and I confess that I was very surprised and eager to explore all this potential. With production still small – the Verdelho only produced 112 bottles – this exclusivity gives them even more character and authenticity. As a chef, I think it’s important to organize these kinds of events to help publicize so much of what we produce in our country, which is still unknown to the vast majority of people. The island of Santa Maria has a lot to discover, both for the ordinary consumer and for us professionals in the kitchen, whose responsibility it is to present such rich and unique national products, such as the Meloa de Santa Maria PGI,” says João Sá.
The melon, the island’s star product, has unique characteristics, with its orange flesh and soft texture, sweet taste, juiciness, and strong aroma. These specific characteristics have earned it not only the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) classification, but also the Marca Açores certification, a seal that confirms the origin and high quality of Azorean products.
This certification, promoted by the Government of the Azores, has been fundamental in guaranteeing the enhancement of the Azorean identity, encouraging the population to preserve this regionality, with the perpetuation of local products, traditional recipes, and services, such as catering, hotels, and tourist promotion companies, which guarantee the preservation of Azorean culture, traditions, and nature, with the uniqueness of each island.
This is the case with sheep’s milk cheese and cottage cheese, a tradition that is exclusive to Santa Maria, unlike the other islands which are dedicated to cow’s milk cheese, or sweets such as ear cookies.
The extensive variety of fish that reflect the underwater richness of these temperate and crystalline waters, with a unique climate in the archipelago that earned Santa Maria the designation of “Island of the Sun”, is also a potential to be explored, important for the island’s reputation as a gastronomic destination.
In addition to identifying the specific characteristics of Santa Maria, this action by Marca Açores also had an educational component, with training workshops led by the chefs, aimed at local restaurants that had signed up.
The sessions served above all to impart new techniques and create a greater awareness of the total use of the product, as in the case of meat and fish, and a broader expression of regional products and recipes on restaurant menus, with new approaches but maintaining the essence of Santa Maria.
The culmination of this initiative was a dinner at the Ponta Negra restaurant prepared by the three chefs, together with the participants in the workshops, with products that are part of the island’s identity, such as turnips and the Meloa IGP, paired with Santa Maria wines and craft beers produced on the island.
This moment of sharing and celebration between those responsible for the initiative and the people involved in the many activities throughout the week underlined the desire to ensure that the island of Santa Maria continues to be so unique and a destination that is attractive not only for its natural surroundings but also for its flavors.
For the evening, the chefs served various dishes, such as lily, citrus and pepper sauce, and Santa Maria cantaloupe; special Santa Maria turbot and pepper sauce; salted whiting and turnips from Santa Maria; lamb in a bowl with yams from Santa Maria; and curd cheese, fresh cheese, and cantaloupe pie, among other suggestions.
This action follows on from the promotion carried out last year on the islands of Flores and Corvo, along similar lines, in an effort by Marca Açores (Azores Brand) to publicize, promote, and preserve the high value of the Azores archipelago as a nature and gastronomy destination.

in Diário dos Açores-Osvcaldo Cabral, director

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.