First of all, there were 5 judges including me for the food part. For the cocktails, they had a different crew, which is good. Probably we might have become drunk before we even get to the food.
In total there are 3 bartenders, 7 chefs and 4 pastry chefs. The participants were:
- Minquel Tan-A-Kiam
- Irwin Mingoen
- David Duel
Chefs:
- Wendy Amatroeslan
- Benedicto Cataggatan
- Gilbert Wirjomoenawi
- Joey Dragman
- Orpheo Uitenwerf
- Lorenzo Harper
- Rodney Felter
Pastry Chefs:
- Ifeula Tilborg
- Quincy Wielson
- Louisa Tjon Meeuw Sioe
- Xaviera MijnheimerFirst of all, I want to say that all the participants had a very challenging job. Not only do they have to come up with an unique creation, but they also have a time limit to finish their creation. And for the chefs, they even have 2 creations to finish: appetizer and entrée. And as if the anxiety and the adrenaline rush isn't enough, our local electricity provider had a total black-out. For all the participants who needed electricity in any way, they had to look for other options.
It did remind me of a show I saw, where pastry chefs couldn't use their mixers and had to use chopsticks to mix their batter. That was cool to see then, but for this group, they were not prepared for these circumstances. But fortunately, everyone gave it their utmost to cope with these issues.
And for us judges, we had 18 creations to taste that practically came in at the same time. But to make it easier for you to read, I've grouped them by contestant.
Chef #1
Appetizer: Pan seared shrimp, papaya salad, croutons & taro leaf chutney
Entrée: Pan fried koebi with spicy tropical mango sauce. sweet potato puree, spicy curry pumpkin n stir-fried water spinach.
My comments:
The appetizer was cold. The papaya tasted like it's about to spoil and the taro leaf was too sour.
The entrée nicely plated. The sweet potato puree was nice and creamy and the deep-fried taro leaf was very crunchy. However I probably should say this at the end, but this was my favorite main course, even though I'm not too fond of fish.
Chef #2
Appetizer: pan grilled shrimp, cucumber roll stuffed with roasted bell pepper, carrots, vermicelli and toast topped with buttered taro leaf. Lemon garlic chili sauce.
Entrée: marinated bang bang on a bed of cassava puree, garlic string beans, caramelized pumpkin, Japanese style omelet and orange citrus sauce.
My comments:
The appetizer: I like the idea of the cucumber roll. the ingredients in it were well-balanced, but for me the spices are a bit on the heavy side. The shrimp however is overcooked and salty.
The entrée: fish was overcooked, the cassava puree had a gluey texture
Chef #3
Appetizer: grilled shrimp, pomelo salad, roasted eggplant roll
Entrée: chicken roulade stuffed with cheese and mushroom, beans puree/ broccoli/ lemon garlic sauce
My comments:
The appetizer: the pomelo salad was missing a dressing or sauce. Since the pomelo has a bitter-ish flavor and the sprouts are not adding any flavor to it, it just tasted bitter. Not a flavor most people favor.
The entrée: the roulade was tough to cut. The meat was too dense and puree was too salty.
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Chef #4
Appetizer: Filled papaya, sea bob mousse, deep-fried gamba and lemon mint dressing
Entrée: Grilled honey ginger lemon pork chop with herbal mix, mashed sweet potato with antroewa ( I think it's bitter tomato in English?), butter taro leaf and pumpkin
My Comments:
The appetizer: first of all, using a hollowed out papaya to fill the sea bob mousse was a very good idea. All mixed together was very well balanced and had a very nice flavor and texture.
The entrée: The first thing that we all noticed was that the pork was raw. This is a very big HACCP issue. Raw pork is a big health hazard!!
Chef#5
Appetizer: grilled chicken filet, napi, sweet potato puree. Cucumber with lettuce. Ginger creamy sauceEntrée: Kandra filet, lemon, coconut risotto with dried shrimps, eggplant, taro leaf and passion fruit hardie sauce.
My Comments:
The appetizer: the chicken was overcooked, the puree was a bit on the heavy side. And probable the chef wanted to create a certain perception, but putting everything on one side of the plate came over as a waste of the space.The entrée: the risotto was undercooked, the eggplant was very greasy and this dish came an hour late. It should've been disqualified, but we still judge in since it was finished. But in case it tasted really good, it might have lost at the end since points would've been deducted due to the tardiness.
There can be all the reasons in the world, but a guest, who waits an hour for its entrée, will be so mad that he/she might not even want to lift a fork.
Chef #6
Appetizer: shrimp-apple tartar with crostini. Tropi-sur beverage
Entrée: Red snapper with sour sop sauce, podosiri (acai berry) risotto. soekwa (loofah)- carrot gratin.
My Comments:
The appetizer: The dish was plated really nice. It was different and very artistic. Unfortunately the shrimp was battered with its shell and deep-fried, so when we bite in it not expecting the shell to remain, it was a very unpleasant surprise. the yoghurt sauce was creamy and well-flavored. The drink was really good next to it. The other judges were comparing it with the rocket popsicle.
The entrée: The dish itself had an odd smell. It could've been the podosiri used. The risotto was also undercooked.
Compared to its appetizer, I wouldn't have thought those two dishes were plated by the same person. The appetizer was so well-thought, where as the entrée looked as if the chef lost its creativeness.
Chef# 7
Appetizer: Totness Chicken
Entrée: Santan Steak - pan seared tenderloin, in a bed of kloewe, babat, tempeh; light curry sauce in cocoa and laos. Spicy tomato trasie sauce.
My Comments:
The appetizer: my chicken filet was overcooked. My colleague judge had a juicier piece of meat. Combined the pineapple and mango make a very tasty salsa.
The entrée: The babat (cow's first belly) was still gamey. ( in Suriname we would say' is nog la la'). It's the only dish with beef, but with all the ingredients, the beef doesn't seem like the main ingredient. And for me, too many flavors on one plate.
Finally, we're off to desserts. It's always the fun part of the whole dining experience, if only you've left enough space in your belly.
Pastry#1 : Warm chocolate lava, infused with Malibu rum and fresh awara pearls. Accompanied with Suriname's best ginger beer mixed with fresh cut pineapples, garnished with podosiri sauce, mint leaves and chocolate tuile.My comments:
When we ladies saw that on the menu, we tripped!! I mean...Chocolate Lava is like chocolate heaven. We even threatened each other not to take too much. But the experience was sooo disappointing. The edges of the cake were so massive and however the center is gooey, the dark chocolate was a bit on the bitter side and it was infused with too much rum. The awara pearls were flavorless. On the other end, the ginger beer was really good. I don't like ginger, so I normally wouldn't drink ginger beer, but this was light and not so ginger-y that it was uncomfortable. I'd drink it again if I got this served.
Pastry#2: Tapse Tisie
Cannelloni with podosiri cream and awara foam and tapioca caviar.
My comments:
This was such a great dessert!! The only one that I'd actually wanted to finish. The cannelloni is crunchy, the podosiri cream was not too sweet and the tapioca caviar gave it such a great texture to it all.
Pastry#3: Earl grey tea mousse topped with mint leaves garnished with mango ravioli, chocolate spheres, tuile and caramel powder.My comments:
Before we even got the dish, we already had a very good first impression from this pastry chef. Their menu was printed on a laminated paper. It's like handing in your paper for school. However the layout and cover might not give you extra points, but you've already gave a good impression.
The dish itself...the mousse was a bit on the sweet side. The spheres are so cool. They burst in your mouth. It's really something you should experience if you get the chance.
Pastry#4: Passion fruit yoghurt parfait and meringue, garnished with sesame tuile.My comments:
This pastry chef really had quite some to endure. Like I mentioned earlier, we had a black-out, so since her creation is yoghurt parfait, it's a very delicate dessert. It needs to stay cooled. And stem of one of her glasses broke and since there's no electricity, she couldn't make a new one. But after all, we did get to taste her creation.
The yoghurt parfait is very light and the meringue gave it a nice twist. What made it really nice was the sesame tuile. It has the nice flavor and aroma of sesame. A really nice dessert.
Wow, this blog has become quite long!! Hopefully I did not bore you guys.
And that's how my judging experience was; It's like food coming in that needed to be tasted and it just doesn't seem to end. And at the end, it was such a relieve that it was finally over.
And if I had to do it all over again? I would be the first in line!
The experience was new and exciting. It's constantly new dishes, new creations and I'm so happy I could taste every one of the dishes. I have to admit. I had some challenges giving points that quickly, but at the very end, we all did it!
And of course, I can't finish this blog, without the results:
Winning Bartender:
no.1. David - 22 Yards
no.2. Irwin - Krasnapolsky
Winning Chefs:
no. 1. Chef #4 Lorenzo - Torarica
no. 2. Chef #1 Benedicto - Spice Quest
no. 3. Chef #2 Gilbert - Suralco Country Club
Note: I'm pretty surprised by the results, but I have to admit that Lorenzo's appetizer was really the best of all the presented appetizers and for the next time, I hope he cooks the pork a bit longer.
Winning Pastry Chef:
no.1. Pastry #2 Xaviera - Krasnapolsky
no.2. Pastry #4 Louisa- Heavenly Sweets.
What I do miss is the chance for any foodie fan to taste these creations. Maybe it's an idea for the several places to present at least the winning dishes in the weeks after such a competition. It's like only watch, no touch for most readers. That's a real torture for most foodies!
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