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November 4, 2007
Culinary Combat
By Meg Landers
Reporter
Mail Tribune
ASHLAND — Armed with empty silver
trays and heavy concentration, chefs and their assistants
were poised to load up at the ingredients table as
Dennis Slattery, master of ceremonies, prepared to
launch an "Iron Chef" style cook-off.
"Let's get ready to crumble," the
MC said.
The 70-minute countdown began. Chefs
from Omar's, Chateaulin, Cucina Biazzi and Pilaf restaurants
raced from their cooking stations to the table to stock
up on celery, mushrooms and carrots as well as parsley,
dried fruit and wine.
The culinary frenzy Saturday morning
was part of the inaugural Food & Wine Classic
of Southern Oregon, sponsored by the Ashland Chamber
of Commerce. Featuring eight local chefs as well as
locally grown food, the event is an effort to boost
the area's tourism among restaurants and wineries.
The cook-off is modeled after the popular cable television
show, "Iron Chef," originally a hit in Japan.
Just prior to the competition, the
chefs learned they were to prepare an entrée
with bison and squash.
Chandra Corwin of Cucina Biazzi had
the largest fan club Saturday, with nearly a dozen
restaurant staff sporting t-shirts reading "I �1/3
Chandra's Cooking."
Susan Powell, chef at Pilaf, seemed
to be having the most fun of the bunch as she sliced,
tossed and baked the various ingredients. She said
she planned to win "by superior creativity and
ingenuity, years and years of experience, and the accumulated
wisdom of many cookbooks."
James Williams of Omar's Restaurant
kept a thoughtful, steady pace.
"This is not my first rodeo," he
said.
Steve Cameron of Chateaulin Restaurant
at the start seemed especially frustrated with trying
to remove a feisty freshness seal on a container of
white pepper, but soon found his pace.
Ten minutes into the culinary competition,
the chefs were quiet and "in the zone," noted
Cory Schrieber, one of the judges. Schrieber, founder
of the Wildwood restaurant in Portland and 1998 winner
of the James Beard Award for Best Chef Pacific Northwest,
also was the commentator throughout the event. Soon,
mouthwatering aromas began wafting through the room.
The chefs are each to prepare three
plates in an hour and 10 minutes, said Schrieber. Plates
are judged on achievement/originality, presentation,
degree of difficulty, taste and texture, and kitchen
skills.
"The criteria (are) just based
on the jaded palates of the judges," admitted
Schrieber.
Whether from standing over hot burners
or from tension and anxiety, the chefs' brows grew
sweaty 35 minutes into the event.
Like Times Square on New Year's Eve,
the crowd began yelling out the remaining 10 seconds
before the chefs had to have three plates prepared.
All movement stopped.
Each chef described their dish for
the judges, then waited.
Steve Cameron of Chateaulin Restaurant
fidgeted and looked nervous as the three judges tasted
the plates.
"There's a little prestige in
it," Cameron said, adding that he hoped to do
well for the restaurant, too.
He said he wasn't troubled by working
in cramped quarters, because he has even less space
in the Chateaulin kitchen. One difficulty, however,
was the lack of burner space.
"We're used to working with eight
or ten burners and we got two slow ones," he said.
Cameron made pan-roasted tenderloin
bison with barley and butternut squash risotto, a root
vegetable medley and cranberry demi-glace. If he had
it to do over again he might do it differently, he
said. "I may not have gone for risotto because
I don't think it came out as finished as we would like."
Corwin and Williams were selected
from the morning's contest to go on to today's semi-finals.
Saturday's afternoon contest included Neil Clooney
of Dragonfly, Kate Cyr of Ashland Springs Hotel/Lark's,
Shane Hardin of the Winchester Inn and Anthony Starelli
of T's restaurants. Judges selected Clooney and Cyr.
Williams, Corwin, Clooney and Cyr
will have their cook-off at 10 a.m. today. The competition
will involve preparing a salad and an appetizer. The
top two will vie for the championship this afternoon
for a salad, entree and dessert competition.
"The degree of complexity goes
up as the competition goes on," said Schrieber.
The winner will receive an engraved
bronze skillet.
Copyright © 2007 Southern Oregon
Media Group, a subsidiary of Ottaway Newspapers, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.
Thank you.
Dragonfly Cafe
and Gardens
241 Hargadine Street, Ashland, Oregon (OR) 97520
541.488.4855 |
