2015 Canadian Culinary Championships grand finale winner chef Ryan O’Flynnof Edmonton hoists his trophy with silver medalist chef Antonio Park from Montreal and Vancouver's chef Kristian Eligh who took the bronze, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015.
Image Credit: Contributed/Yuri Akuney
February 08, 2015 - 11:37 AM
KELOWNA – It’s not your typical Okanagan dinner fare, but you’d expect nothing less from the nation’s top chefs as they competed in the Canadian Culinary Championships in Kelowna this weekend.
The grand finale winning dish from chef Ryan O’Flynn from the Westin Hotel in Edmonton was a Terrine of pine smoked Alberta river sturgeon and cured Quebec foie gras, wild North West Territory morels, textures of Okanagan apples and toasted brioche, according to a media release. The wine he paired his French meatloaf with was a Sandhill Small Lots 2013 Viognier.
“It feels great. It means a lot to the city,” O’Flynn said.
The black box format event featured 11 Gold Medal Plate winning chefs from across Canada who qualified for the championships at the Delta Grand Okanagan.
The silver medal went to chef Antonio Park from the Park Restaurant in Montreal, while chef Kristian Eligh from the Hawksworth Restaurant in Vancouver took bronze.
The two-day Championships also featured a mystery wine competition for the People’s Choice Award. The chefs were given 24 hours to prepare a dish pared with a 2013 Pinotage from Stoneboat Vineyard in the Okanagan. They were given a food budget of $600 to feed 500 guests.
The winner was chef Mark McCrow from the Aqua Kitchen/Bar in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
“We are blown away by the response. We didn’t expect to win,” McCrowe said.
And it wasn’t all about food. Canadian musical icon Barney Bentall along with John Mann, Geoffrey Kelly and Matthew Harder from the legendary band Spirit of the West performed for the over 600 people at the event.
All the money raised by the Culinary Championships is donated to the Canadian Olympic Foundation. Over $9.5-million has been raised to date.
Kelowna Olympic silver medalist in freestyle skiing Kelsey Serwa, left, is pictured with 2015 Canadian Culinary Champion chef Ryan O’Flynn from Edmonton following the grand finale event at the Delta Grand Okanagan in Kelowna, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015.
Image Credit: Contributed/Yuri Akuney
Musical guest Barney Bentall along with John Mann, Geoffrey Kelly and Matthew Harder from the legendary band Spirit of the West performed at the grand finale of the Canadian Culinary Championships, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015.
Image Credit: Contributed/Yuri Akuney
To contact the reporter for this story, email Howard Alexander at halexander@infonews.ca or call 250-491-0331. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2015