Western Sweep 2024
by Mary Bailey
All Photos Julian Sun, Jordan Chan
The winners from left, chefs Rupert Garcia, Jasper Cruikshank and JP Dublado. All Photos Julian Sun, Jordan Chan
There was delicious food and wine, chef camaraderie and not much sleep at the 2024 Canadian Culinary Championships (CCC) held in Ottawa in February. The annual event gathers 10 chefs (the winners of regional Kitchen Parties) in a gruelling three-day competition—Mystery Wine Challenge, the Black Box and the Grande Finale. The CCC provides an opportunity for chefs from across the country to make lasting friendships, building a network of chefs and Canadian cuisine from coast to coast. It also showcases some of Canada’s best wines and raises funds for Spirit North and MusiCounts nationally and, in Ottawa, the Boys and Girls Club and the Ottawa Network for Education. Congratulations chefs!
Chef Cruikshank’s Grand Finale dish
Gold
Chef Jasper Cruickshank
Wild Blue Restaurant + Bar, Whistler, British Columbia.
Wine Pairing Grand Finale:
2021 Roche Tradition Pinot Gris, Naramata Bench, British Columbia.
Elegance, balance and ineffable finesse are the hallmarks of Jasper’s cooking. His Mystery Wine and Black Box dishes each demonstrated innovation and superb control, seamlessly marrying modern and classic techniques. Yet the BC chef’s Grand Finale dish is what truly locked down the championship. It was, in a word, sublime.
Jasper’s Wild BC Experience was an ethereal, heartfelt expression of reverence for the west coast’s rich seafood bounty. Texturally playful, it highlighted the natural sweetness of sidestripe shrimp terrine with the light acidity of verjus-pickled tapioca, alongside a crisp leek-wakame tuile and a daikon parcel filled with leek purée. A Dungeness crab tartlet completed the trifecta, topped with crab espuma and masago rice pearls. The immaculate geoduck reduction was the finishing master stroke. Chef’s pairing of Roche 2021 Tradition Pinot Gris was exceptional, its minerality and subtle almond notes impeccably complementing the oceanic flavours of his dish.
“Winning this competition solidified that the hard work, dedication, and perseverance was worth it,” Jasper reflects. As for what lies ahead? “I take this as a stepping stone. I’ve been cooking for 17 years now, and still have only scratched the surface of what’s possible.”
Joie Alvaro Kent, British Columbia Judge
Chef Garcia’s Grand Finale dish
Silver
Chef Rupert Garcia
Hawthorn Dining Room & Bar at the Fairmont Palliser, Calgary, Alberta.
Wine Pairing Grand Finale:
2021 Monte Creek Frontenac Noir, Thompson Valley, British Columbia.
Two days after winning silver at the 2024 Canadian Culinary Championships in Ottawa, Rupert Garcia is back in his kitchen at the Palliser stacking pots for the evening service. He’s exhausted from the competition, but his enthusiasm is dialed up to maximum, graciously thanking his culinary team and all the teachers and mentors who have helped him along the way.
Garcia has a talent for working with ingredients to present beautiful, creative, tasty dishes. His gala dish of cured and cranberry-glazed trout wrapped in a trout skin tuile with smoked trout caviar, an apple crème fraiche and cranberry pickle was stunning.
Born in the Philippines, Garcia immigrated to Canada at age 10 with his family, which includes many excellent home cooks. But it wasn’t until he started working in fast-casual restaurants as a young dishwasher that he began to appreciate the potential of food. He enrolled in SAIT and quickly took to the kitchen, entering numerous competitions. In 2014 he represented Canada at the Chaine des Rotisseurs global competition in South Africa, bringing home a silver medal from that too.
And next? “I’d like to do the Bocuse,” says Garcia, aiming high.
But first, he has a kitchen full of pots to stack.
John Gilchrist, Calgary Judge
Chef Dublado’s Grand Finale dish
Bronze
JP Dublado
Red Deer Resort and Casino, Red Deer, Alberta.
Wine Pairing Grand Finale:
Frind Sparkling Brut, Kelowna, British Columbia.
Chef Dublado competed at the CCC in 2020, where he took People’s Choice at the Mystery Wine Challenge. This year, JP had a different attitude. “Then, I was super happy just to be here among all the chefs,” he said. “I felt I had won already.” This year? “My goal is podium. I’m ready mentally, more serious; I know what to expect.” Dublado (with sous chef David Jenkins) won People’s Choice at the Mystery Wine Challenge again this year with a bold tuna and beet dish. It resounded with the earthy red fruit flavours of the 2021 Lailey Zweigelt chosen by national wine advisor, David Lawrason (who always chooses something clever). Chef carried the momentum of Friday night’s win through the competition to a bronze finish overall. His gala dish, sable fish and Hokkaido scallop with local corn and miso, enlivened with calamansi and herbs was a beautiful dish. (He had us at the tiny beet root tartelette holding a bijou sphere of corn and foie gras mousse.)
Chef Dublado’s Mystery Wine dish
He has the heart of a true competitor. Within five minutes of expressing his joy of a podium finish, JP was thinking about his next goal—gold.
Mary Bailey, Edmonton Judge