Scientologist Takes First Place in Florida Culinary Competition
Clearwater, FL, March 1, 2016 (Newswire.com) - Kevin Maier, a chef at the Church of Scientology religious retreat in Clearwater, Florida, won the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Southeast Regional Young Chef Competition, Sunday, February 28, held at Keiser University in Melbourne, Florida.
Founded in 1248 in Paris, Chaîne des Rôtisseurs, is the world’s oldest international gastronomic society. Their young chef completion is open to chefs who are 27 or younger.
Judges watched as they prepared their dishes, looking for the way they conducted themselves in the kitchen, including knife skills and sanitation. These were factored into their final scores, along with the nutritional value of the food and its taste and artistic presentation.
Arriving at the site of the competition at Keiser University, each chef received a black box containing frog legs, a rack of lamb and rabbit, golden beets, red beets, fennel and asparagus. They were then allotted 30 minutes to plan a menu and three hours, with access to a common pantry, to produce a three-course culinary tour de force consisting of appetizer, entrée and dessert. Finally, they had 30 minutes to “plate the meal” and present it to the panel.
Judges watched as they prepared their dishes, looking for the way they conducted themselves in the kitchen, including knife skills and sanitation. These were factored into their final scores, along with the nutritional value of the food and its taste and artistic presentation.
Maier will now go on to the national Chaîne des Rôtisseurs competition in June at Keiser’s campus in Sarasota, Florida.
The other competitors were Lydia Ross, who works at Chevy Chase Club in Maryland; Robin Neff, who works at the Ritz Carlton in Sarasota; Richard McCaw, who works at Hyatt Regency Coconut Point in Bonita Springs; Devin Davis, who works at Rolling Pin Kitchen Emporium in Brandon; Daniel Wernz, who is a work study tudor at Le Cordon Bleu in Orlando; and Arthur Meade, who works at La Coq au Vin in Orlando.
The first of the Young Chefs competitions was organized in 1977 in Switzerland to support and promote future young chefs by giving them the opportunity to demonstrate their skills.
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