URUCON 2026 · An evening to connect
Gala Dinner
An Immersive Experience in Uruguayan Culture
The URUCON 2026 Gala Dinner has been conceived as an immersive experience in Uruguayan culture, inviting participants to discover the country’s identity through its flavors, wines, music, and one of Montevideo’s most iconic settings.
ANTEL panoramic deck · Montevideo
Panoramic Observation Deck · ANTEL Tower
01 / The setting
Montevideo, from a new perspective.
In a privileged location offering panoramic views of the city and its coastline, the evening will combine a culinary experience inspired by local cuisine, a selection of Uruguayan wines, and live music performed by local artists.
More than just a dinner, the event is designed as a space for gathering and celebration, offering guests the opportunity to experience the essence of Uruguay through its gastronomy, music, landscape, and traditions in an evening specially created for URUCON 2026 participants.
The Gala Dinner will take place at the Panoramic Observation Deck of the Antel Telecommunications Tower, one of Montevideo’s most distinctive venues.
Located on the 26th floor, more than 100 meters above the city, the observation deck offers spectacular 360° panoramic views of Montevideo from a unique vantage point. From there, guests can admire the cityscape, Montevideo Bay, the port, and the coastline of the Río de la Plata, providing an exceptional setting for the celebration.
Architecture and landscape
Designed by renowned Uruguayan architect Carlos Ott, the Telecommunications Tower is one of the landmarks of contemporary architecture in Montevideo and a symbol closely associated with the development of telecommunications and technology in Uruguay.
Holding the Gala Dinner in this remarkable setting will allow the landscape itself to become part of the experience: Montevideo will provide the backdrop for the evening, offering URUCON 2026 participants the opportunity to discover the city from one of its most outstanding viewpoints.
- Floor
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- Meters above the city
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- Views of Montevideo
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02 / The flavors
The essence of Uruguay, at the table.
Uruguayan gastronomy reflects the country’s history and traditions, combining a strong criollo heritage with influences brought mainly by successive waves of European immigration. Beef, cheese, and other products rooted in Uruguay’s long-standing livestock tradition hold a central place in its culinary identity, alongside dishes that are deeply connected to everyday life and social gatherings.
The culinary experience designed for the URUCON 2026 Gala Dinner draws inspiration from these traditions and presents them in a contemporary format, inviting guests to discover a variety of local flavors throughout the evening. Uruguayan meats, criollo preparations, cheeses, dulce de leche, and locally produced wines will take center stage in an experience that offers our international guests another way to discover Uruguay: through its food and its table.
The traditions behind the flavors
Beef is one of Uruguay’s most representative products and an undisputed centerpiece of its cuisine. Asado and the different cuts of meat cooked over an open fire are much more than a way of preparing food: they are part of a tradition deeply associated with gathering, sharing, and celebration. Alongside them are other characteristic flavors, including cured meats and sausages, criollo preparations, and cheeses, all rooted in the country’s strong agricultural and livestock heritage.
Uruguayan cuisine also reflects a significant Spanish and Italian influence, evident in dishes such as empanadas, tortillas, and a wide variety of preparations featuring meat, vegetables, and cheese. Among its sweet flavors, dulce de leche holds a particularly special place and is featured in many traditional desserts. Another classic is Martín Fierro, a traditional combination of cheese and dulce de membrillo (quince paste), in which the contrast between sweet and savory creates one of the simplest and most characteristic desserts on the Uruguayan table.
03 / The wines
A toast to our homeland.
Stagnari Winery · Salto, Uruguay
Wine is also an important part of Uruguay’s gastronomic culture. Among its grape varieties, Tannat holds an emblematic place and has become one of the defining features of the country’s winemaking identity. The Gala Dinner will feature a selection of wines from Stagnari Winery, from the department of Salto, in northern Uruguay, a region with a long-standing winemaking tradition and distinctive conditions for grape cultivation. The selection will offer guests the opportunity to discover different expressions of Uruguayan wine, including Viognier, the red varietals Cabernet, Tannat, and Merlot, and a Cabernet–Tannat blend.
- Viognier
- Cabernet
- Tannat
- Merlot
- Cabernet–Tannat
04 / Live at the gala
Copla Alta
It is from this land that Copla Alta emerged. The folk duo, formed by Néstor Moreno and Alejandro Silvera, brings together two friends and musicians who were born and raised in Santa Clara de Olimar, Treinta y Tres. Over their 20-year career, they have performed at some of Uruguay’s most important festivals, developing a musical identity rooted in folk and popular traditions while incorporating a contemporary perspective and a distinctive style of their own.
Their connection to their homeland lies at the heart of their artistic identity. Through their songs, Copla Alta brings to life the stories, traditions, and cultural heritage of their place of origin, maintaining a strong bond with their community even after two decades of performing on stages throughout the country.
Copla Alta will provide the live music for the URUCON 2026 Gala Dinner, bringing the sounds of Uruguay’s countryside to Montevideo and offering our guests the opportunity to experience, through live music, a deeply rooted and meaningful part of the country’s cultural identity.
Our cultural roots
One country. So many sounds.
Uruguayan music is the result of the encounter between different cultures, territories, and histories. In a small country, African, European, and criollo traditions gave rise to a remarkably diverse range of musical expressions that, over time, have become an essential part of Uruguay’s cultural identity.
Candombe
Candombe has its roots in the enslaved African population brought to the territory during the colonial period and in the Afro-Uruguayan communities that preserved and transformed their traditions over generations. The sound of its three characteristic drums —chico, repique, and piano— continues to fill the streets of Montevideo and is today one of Uruguay’s most recognizable cultural expressions.
Murga
Uruguayan murga, in turn, draws on influences from carnival traditions brought from Spain, which developed a distinctive identity of their own in Uruguay. With its characteristic choral singing, percussion, colorful costumes, and painted faces, murga uses humor, satire, and social commentary to tell the story of each passing year. Music, theater, and carnival come together in an art form deeply connected to Montevideo’s popular culture.
Tango
Tango emerged within the shared Río de la Plata cultural region of Uruguay and Argentina, developing in Montevideo and Buenos Aires during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its earliest settings included working-class neighborhoods, cafés, dance halls, and the nightlife of both shores of the Río de la Plata. Over time, this music, born on the margins of society, would become one of the region’s most internationally recognized cultural symbols.
Milonga & criollo tradition
Beyond the city, Uruguayan music finds another of its deepest roots in the countryside and criollo tradition. The guitar accompanies genres such as the milonga, the cifra, and other folk rhythms that have been used for generations to tell stories and portray the landscapes and ways of life of rural Uruguay. The milonga, in particular, holds a special place in this tradition: guitar and words come together in a musical form closely associated with rural life and the figure of the traditional folk singer.
Treinta y Tres & the Olimar River
In eastern Uruguay, the department of Treinta y Tres has a musical identity closely connected to the Olimar River. The region has been the birthplace of prominent figures in Uruguayan folk and popular music and maintains a deep connection with singing, guitar, and folklore. Each year, the banks of the Olimar become a gathering place for music and celebration, bringing together artists and audiences from across the country around a tradition in which music, landscape, and identity are deeply intertwined.
Local flavors. Live music. Unforgettable views.
A celebration of our culture, specially created for URUCON 2026 participants.