NEW YORK A dozen chefs were selected to participate in a cook-off to determine who will represent the United States in the 2011 Bocuse d'Or culinary competition in Lyon, France.
The semifinalists were chosen by Bocuse d’Or USA Foundation directors Daniel Boulud, Thomas Keller and Jerome Bocuse. They are:
- Luke Bergman, The Modern, New York
- Danny Cerqueda, Carolina Country Club, Raleigh, N.C.
- Michael Clauss, Daily Planet, Burlington, Vt.
- Kevin Gillespie, Woodfire Grill, Atlanta
- James Kent, Eleven Madison Park, New York
- Mark Liberman, Roxy's, West Palm Beach, Fla.
- Christopher Parsons, Catch, Winchester, Mass.
- Jennifer Petrusky, Charlie Trotter's, Chicago
- John Rellah, New York Yacht Club, New York
- Jeremie Tomczak, French Culinary Institute, New York
- Andrew Weiss, Las Vegas
- Percy Whatley, The Ahwahnee, Yosemite, Calif.
The semifinalists will compete in February for a spot on the team. That competition will be held at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., and will be free and open to the public. The chefs will prepare Scottish salmon and domestic lamb platters with five garnishes in five and a half hours, Boulud said. The judges, which include CIA instructors and Bocuse d'Or USA Foundation members, will choose the winners based on taste, presentation, technical skill and kitchen organization.
Judges will select a winner and the winner's assistant, who will compete as a team in the Bocuse d'Or. Second- and 3rd-place teams also will be picked. Prizes include $5,000 for 1st place, $4,000 for 2nd place, and $3,000 for the 3rd runner-up. The foundation said it will also provide the finalists with a customized, yearlong training program.
Following the competition, there will be a gala fundraiser at the CIA for the Bocuse d'Or USA Foundation, a nonprofit organization established this year.
Thomas Keller, president of The Bocuse d'Or USA Foundation, said he looks “forward to working with [the semi-finalists] in their initial preparation for the U.S. finals in Hyde Park this February."
The Bocuse d'Or, founded in 1987 by chef Paul Bocuse, is an international cooking contest held every two years in France. The 2009 competition drew chefs from 24 countries.
“It is one of the most difficult competitions in the world,” said Jerome Bocuse, son of founder Paul Bocuse.
For more information visit www.bocusedorusa.org.
Contact Pamela Parseghian at [email protected].