It might be said I owe the members of NRHEG’s culinary competition teams an apology.
I went along last month as 10 “ProStart” students took part in state-level competition. ProStart is a program sponsored by the National Restaurant Association. It creates opportunities for students who enjoy preparing and serving food to see the career possibilities the field offers.
I felt it was something the newspaper should cover–state level competition. I was glad to go. But the day was going to be long, with everyone boarding the bus at 6 a.m. and an anticipated return time about 12 hours later.
I took along a book thinking I would be in need of entertainment.
Boy, was I wrong.
There was plenty of bustle and activity as we arrived and found the locations that would be significant to us, specifically the work spaces allotted to each of the two five-member teams. Time flew, and suddenly it was 9:45, when NRHEG’s first team was scheduled to begin preparing its dishes. Each competing group was required to display a menu which included an appetizer, main entree, and dessert.
No cooking could begin until the one-hour timer was started, and all food had to be on the tray, ready for delivery to judges, before the closely-watched second hand reached zero. There were 18 teams at the competition. About every half hour, another two would be given the “go” signal and the furor would begin anew.
It was riveting.
Team members told me they had been practicing and refining their systems for weeks. Everyone had specific jobs to do, and only a relatively tight space to do them in. They not only had to work quickly, but their objective was to present tasty, visually appealing finished products that would catch the attention of the panels of judges. Every cut, every turn of the whisk, was important.
Oh, and they were surrounded by tournament officials watching everything they did. There were separate scores and awards for knife skills, sanitation, teamwork, team spirit, menu design, “essence of taste,” creative plating (how the food looks as it is served), management, and, finally the grand award, culinary preparation and a trip to national-level competition. Adults with clipboards were circulating everywhere, referencing the menus, conferring on the sidelines, and occasionally asking questions. “Time remaining” announcements were heard all around the room.
There were even moments of somewhat dark humor–for example when one team had to struggle to get some unexpectedly crystallized honey out of its bottle.
Nearly every team raced through the last few minutes, just managing to put their visually attractive and luscious-smelling dishes onto the tray as the last seconds were counted down. Words are not sufficient to describe, but one NRHEG team served a lemon asparagus salad with shallots, pistachios and a poached egg as an appetizer, honey-glazed salmon with zesty rice as an entree, and a lemon mousse dessert garnished with white chocolate, pistachios and fresh blueberries. The other NRHEG team began with savory French crepes with bacon, tomatoes, baby spinach and cheese as an appetizer, seared tilapia with steamed asparagus and sauteed potatoes as an entree, and coffee mousse with chocolate shavings and a mint sprig for dessert.
The other 16 teams produced equally sophisticated finished meals.
Perhaps all that will help you picture how dynamic and suspenseful it was to be in that gigantic ballroom at RiverCentre. There was constant activity. The room was filled with luscious smells. The contestants were deeply engaged in each phase of their preparations.
I am not qualified to be a judge, but I almost wished I could be, just for the sake of tasting all those beautiful foods.
NRHEG’s only award at the end of the day was to an individual student, Peyton Curtis, for “knife skills.” Only four of the 90 students competing were selected for this particular acknowledgment. The prize? A five-piece knife set. With or without a title, though, every competitor that day was a winner as far as I was concerned. They had faced and overcome tremendous challenges.
As I emptied my backpack at home that evening, I came across the book I had taken along. I was almost surprised to find it there, having not thought of it even once during the 14 hours of the trip.
So, NRHEG ProStart, thank you. Your accomplishments were overshadowed only by your effort and determination. Excellent work–and thank you for the entertainment.