LESKOVAC, Serbia, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- The 28th Rostiljijada barbecue festival, one of the most visited in Serbia opened on Monday on the streets of southern city of Leskovac, with sounds of drums, dance of majorettes and tens of thousands of tourists from all over the region.

At the main street of Leskovac, well-known in the region for its tasty barbecue, the manifestation that draws up to 500,000 tourists for seven days started with the presence of the Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

Opening the festival, he said that Leskovac has the potential to become well-known for its cuisine much wider than the region, and that Rostiljijada ranks among the country's biggest events that attracts most people.

"Rostiljijada is the biggest manifestation in Serbia. It is bigger than Beerfest, as well as Guca and Exit music festivals and Leskovac has a lot to be proud of," Vucic said.

The ceremony included majorettes, drummers and the performance of the well-known brass orchestra of Fejat and Nebojsa Sejdic.

Every day until Sept. 3 visitors to Leskovac will be entertained with music and dance performances, evening concerts of local bands, and degustation of barbecue delicacies.

On Thursday barbecue masters from Leskovac will traditionally attempt to make the biggest hamburger in the world, as last year they succeeded in grilling a burger weighing more than 60 kilograms.

In the countries of the former Yugoslavia as well as the region, Leskovac has been for decades the unofficial capital of barbecue, and for its special recipe it is much appreciated across the region.

All over the country, as well as the rest of the Balkans, fast foods sell barbecue allegedly made according to the secret recipe of Leskovac's masters who are also considered the best chefs in Serbia.