Welcome to the World Culinary Olympics 2012

It was a short journey from Bristol to Erfurt, but we made it there and back in one piece… Although, coming back I think we gained a few extra pieces.  It’s amazing how much food and beer you can pack in each day when you’re on vacation. Especially while attending one of the most respected food competitions in the world.

The day before the Olympics held the opening ceremony.  Most of it was in German which I only know a little of, but one of my previous teachers from culinary school is very old school German and he said it reminded him of the good old days.. So it must have been good!..

The Parade of Nations finished with an amazing light show and a “when is this thing over?” performance from what seemed like a cover band for Stomp…

Check out the highlights from the opening ceremony

On day 1, Culinary Team Canada had their hot competition.  Each team was required to 90+ covers 3 courses within a certain time frame.  During service the judges will be given the food to judge at random.We arrived shortly after 10, and the look in the teams eyes was pure focus and determination.  They worked meticulously throughout the day and worked as a team in keeping other team members on schedule. It was like watching a well oiled machine up until around 5:30 and hoping they finished in time and ready for service. It was quite literally a nail biter. 

After watching the team cook and prepare their menu we started to get hungry.  Unfortunately all the tickets were sold out months ago, but by the grace of luck and connections, I was able to score two free tickets for dinner at the last minute.  Everything was incredible!  If I was to say anything negative it would only be nitpicking, and who cares what I think. It’s all up to the judges… Who loved it! And awarded Team Canada a gold medal in the hot kitchen.

Poyan Danesh and Jefferey Young cleaning lobster under the watchful eye of one of the judges.

“The Restaurant of Nations began with a 6am call to the preparation kitchen, where we packed and loaded everything the team would need for the competition. We arrived at the Messe at 9am, unpacked, and the chefs began organizing their work stations. All the kitchens start out in the same layout, but many pieces of equipment are modular, and the chefs had an exact layout in mind for maximizing their efficiency. Each individual chef also laid out their mise-en-place, which is their personal work station of knives, garnishes, sauces, and other tools and ingredients.

From 10-11am the chefs were visited by health inspectors and judges to ensure that they met all the basic standards laid out in the rules. During this time the chefs could not touch any of the food or begin cooking prep. One judge removed a large tray of scallops because they were not in the shell–everything the chefs serve must be prepared start-to-finish in the hot kitchen, including shelling the scallops. Luckily, they did have scallops in the shell also, and they were big enough that the chefs did not need to modify the recipe.

At 11am the competition began. There was no bell or buzzer, the chefs just began their work. They cooked without any break for water or food until 5pm, when they had to set up the kitchen for service. Still without any break for food or water, they gave an almost flawless 2-hour service to 110 people in the banquet hall.”

-Culinary Team Canada

Brad Horren and Patrick Gayler

At the end of service, the team packed everything up, scrubbed the kitchen spotless and headed back to the hotel to work all night long on the cold show part of the competition.

For those who don’t know, cold show is the presentation of incredible looking food that is glazed in aspic (gelatin) so it is able to shine and remain intact for hours.  Remember when your mom told you not to play with your food? Well this is what these guys do.  I’ve done one cold show in the past and it was meticulous repetition at attempting perfection of your vision.

In the end of it all, we were able to eat Team Canada, Junior Team Canada, Great Britain Military Team, Team England and Team Guatemala.  Came back with what feels and looks like 2kg, and long lasting memories and inspirations.  Only 4 years to go until the next round!

Next??? The Bocuse d’Or! Hopefully…

Enjoy the amazing food gallery below!