Popular Community Bank, a premier community bank in New York for more than 50 years, today announced that it is the official event sponsor for the culinary and cultural festival Puerto Rico Meets NYC, September 30 to October 4 in several locations around New York.

Puerto Rico meets NYC encompasses a series of multi-day, multi-format events that celebrate the bounty and beauty of this Caribbean island’s culinary legacy. By shedding light on Puerto Rico’s best chefs, rums, and traditions, Puerto Rico Meets NYC will give this sunny destination the epicurean respect and exposure it deserves.

Events include an intimate dinner for 40 with Chef Eric Ripert from Le Bernardin cooking on-site with Puerto Rican visiting chef Jose Santaella. Another special dinner is a 5-course tasting menu by Puerto Rican icon and owner/chef Wilo Benet of San Juan’s Pikayo. Other events, besides several lunch and dinner pairings, include the resurrection of the beloved Latino-Jewish El Nosh pop-up, and a closing Sunday Lechon Asado Block Party Brunch in Brooklyn.

“Popular Community Bank has been in the fabric of New York’s neighborhoods for more than half a century, and the bank’s parent company, Popular Inc., is the largest financial institution in Puerto Rico. Naturally, we are honored to be the official event sponsor of this fantastic multi-day festival to celebrate culinary fusion between the finest chefs of Puerto Rico and New York,” said Manuel Chinea, COO of Popular Community Bank. “We welcome the opportunity to introduce more New Yorkers to the culinary marvels of Puerto Rico and to share our common experiences.”

“Meets NYC is thrilled to have Popular Community Bank as the official event sponsor,” said Meets NYC founder Marie Elena Martinez. “With its roots in Puerto Rico and its history in New York, they fully appreciate how we can learn from each other, share culinary innovation, and strengthen our bonds during this multi-day festival in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Popular Community Bank understands the special relationship the island shares with New York.”

Participating chefs from Puerto Rico include: Pedro Alvarez (Alcor Foods), Wilo Benet (Pikayo), Juan Jose Cuevas (1919), Xavier Pacheco (La Jaquita Baya), Mario Pagan (Sage Steakhouse Bistro, Laurel, Lemongrass), Kevin Roth (La Estacion), José Santaella (Santaella), Roberto Treviño (Budatai, Casa Lola, El Nosh).

New York City host chefs include: Camille Becerra (Navy), Didier Elena (Chef's Club), Carmen Gonzalez (La Chispa), Eric Greenspan (Roof on Wilshire), Joseph "JJ" Johnson (The Cecil), Sean Rembold (Reynard/Wythe Hotel), Eric Ripert (Le Bernardin) and Alexander Smalls (The Cecil) The James Beard House.

In addition, local "Nuyorican" chefs including Manolo Lopez of MofonGO NY and Angel Jimenez of Lechonera La Pirana, as well as husband-wife team Jean-Francois Bonnet and Dina Melendez of Tumbador Chocolate, will be serving at the Lechon Asado.

Tickets are available via Eventbrite http://www.eventbrite.com/o/puerto-rico-meets-new-york-city-5848238095 or http://meetsnyc.com. The events include:

  • Paired New York-Puerto Rican Chef Dinners on Thursday, October 1st through Saturday, October 3rd, all held at various restaurants around the city.
  • A closing, alfresco Lechon Asado brunch
  • A walk-around tasting of Puerto Rico’s most delicious delicacies from alcapurrias (fritters) to mofongo (mashed plantains) to lechon (roasted pork) on Sunday, October 4th will formally close the series.

About Meets NYC

The Meets NYC concept aims to both entertain and educate a NYC audience on the culinary legacies of destinations around the globe. The first event, Baja Meets NYC (2014), was a multi-day, multi-format culinary salon that brought five Baja winemakers and three Baja chefs to New York City for a four-day program of wine tastings, paired wine dinners, and cocktail parties and saw a marriage between local and visiting chefs and restaurants, wine and spirits, and tourism boards.

Meets NYC Social Media Handles: Website: www.meetsnyc.com, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meetsnewyorkcity, Twitter: @meetsnyc and Instagram: @meetsnyc

About Popular Community Bank

Founded in 1893, Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ: BPOP) is the leading banking institution by both assets and deposits in Puerto Rico and ranks among the top 50 U.S. banks by assets. In the United States, Popular Community Bank has established a community-banking franchise providing a broad range of financial services and products with branches in New York, New Jersey and Florida.

Popular Community Bank’s services are available at branches and online at http://popularcommunitybank.com. For customers seeking more information, call 1-800-377-0800 or email popularnet@bpop.com. Find out about the community service of Popular Community Bank on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PopularCommunityBank.