The St Lucia Culinary Team brought home eight medals, two special awards and stole the heart of the judges at the just concluded Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s (CHTA) Taste of the Caribbean Culinary Competition hosted at the Hyatt Regency in Miami. The team arrived on Monday this week to a welcoming ceremony held in the VIP lounge at the George FL Charles Airport.
The annual event, which occurred from June 20 to 24 saw 11 different teams converge in an all-out food and beverage battle for top honours including Caribbean Culinary Team of the Year, Caribbean Chef of the Year, Caribbean Pastry Chef of the Year, Caribbean Bartender of the Year and Caribbean Junior Chef of the Year.
Seven talented chefs represented St Lucia, all of which won medals in their category. Second Vice President of the St Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association (SLHTA), Daniel Belizaire says he is proud of the achievements of the team and is aware of the hard and work and effort that went into the preparation for the competition.
“I had no doubt whatsoever, after attending many of the tastings at the various restaurants that they will be bringing back the hardware that is being displayed here this afternoon. I assure you all at the next SLHTA meeting slated for Friday this week; I will be putting a proper request for a special ceremony to celebrate an occasion such as this.
“I was made to understand that the team stole the show last night at the awards ceremony and won recognition in every category which they participated in,” said Belizaire.
In his brief remarks, Minister for Tourism, Lorne Theophilus expressed gratitude towards the team and says they are now ambassadors because they have attempted what many have done and will continue to do.
“We are proud of your achievement. We are proud of you but at the same time we are encouraging you to continue to aim for higher standards. Continue to improve your craft and continue to develop and contribute to this sector we call tourism.
“You are a vital component in the development of the sector,” he said.
Team captain, Trevor Felicien says he is happy with the outcome of the competition. Although he says this is his first time leading the team, despite challenges, he was able to lead out successfully.
“We are very proud of winning eight medals including a gold medal for chef of the year, we got the gold medal for best use of cheese and we got a silver medal for the junior chef of the year.
“We had a few challenges but nothing to keep us backward. Puerto Rico did very well and also Trinidad and Tobago but Haiti, who joined the competition since after being struck by an earthquake brought on an emotional moment for some during the competition. Overall, it was a very successful competition for us,” said Felicien.
Elijah Jules, chef at the Jade Mountain Hotel won gold for chef of the year. He says he is very proud of his achievement competing for the first time.
“It was blood rushing, mind bursting, vein popping
. . . I almost got a heart attack out there but it eventually came out well. Going through this competition made me realize that food is not just food anymore. There is so much going on with the food now.
“I am very proud of my team. We had good team cooperation. Sometimes we slipped up a bit but in all we did well. Next year, we are hoping to improve on the areas where we fell short and just maybe emerge even more victorious than this year,” said Jules.
Elijah Jules won a gold medal for chef of the year; Emmerly Gerald won the only gold medal for best use of cheese; Dulish Perera won a silver medal in the pastry chef competition; Paulyn Eugene won a silver medal in the junior chef of the year category; Delroy Fred won a bronze medal in the Seafood category and Odeen Martin won a bronze medal in the beef category.
Congratulations!
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