The Canadian Culinary Championships raise money for Olympic athletes and raises the profile of Canadian wine and food.
The Canadian Culinary Championships (CCC) brings together the 11 winners of regional Gold Medal Plates competitions from sea to sea. This year medalists also spanned the country — Alex Chen, Vancouver nabbed the gold; Eric Gonzales, Montréal, won silver and Barry Mooney, Halifax, took the bronze. Our Gold Medal Plates champ Shane Chartrand just missed the podium, but it was a fabulous effort from Shane and his crew. Gold Medal Plates is dedicated to raising the profile of Canadian food and wine and raising money for Olympic athletes — over $13 million to date for the Canadian Olympic Foundation. It’s always a treat to go to the CCC in Kelowna, even more so in an Olympic year.
Bronze: Chef Barry Mooney, Gio, Halifax
Grand Finale Pairing: Benjamin Bridge NV Brut Rosé, Gaspereau Valley
Two weeks after flying back across the country from Kelowna to Halifax, Barry Mooney said he still has “little shivers going through me” when he thinks about becoming the first chef from Nova Scotia to end the Canadian Culinary Championship with a spot on the podium.
Having watched such Nova Scotia luminaries as Ray Bear, Martin Ruiz Salvador, Renee Lavallee and Mark Gray place no higher than fourth over the years, it was a pleasant surprise to see Mooney perform so strongly, especially considering the fact he stepped in fairly late in the process to replace his boss when she became unable to complete at the Halifax GMP event.
Mooney went west vowing not to overcomplicate things, and stayed true to that in the wine pairing part of the competition, serving a succulent pork cheek when almost everyone else went with seafood. Giving him oysters in the black box was almost unfair, so often does he serve them at Gio, and two of our most seasoned judges declared his rabbit the best in the competition.
As for his gala dish, starring smoked pork consommé and ham hock terrine, Mooney says “I’ll be proud of that until I die.” In Halifax, we feel that way about him.
Bill Spurr, Halifax, CCC Judge
Silver: Chef Eric Gonzalez, L’Atelier Robuchon, Montréal Grande Finale Pairing: Painted Rock 2013 Syrah, Okanagan Valley
Eric Gonzalez is no ordinary chef. A native of southern France, one can say that he grew up in a garden of sorts. At least, close to a garden since his mother often cooked from the immediate home environment all that she could get her hands on. And if not, everything that came from the local seasonal market: olives, lemons, fruits, vegetables, fish, cheeses. And that proximity to the sunny nature of Provence has always inspired his cooking.
He was trained and worked in some of the most prestigious houses of the country, Loiseau in Burgundy and Chibois in Cannes were his first masters and no doubt, major inspirations. Then at age 27, in his first job as chef, he obtained his first Michelin star. From then on, he lived — and certainly cooked — as a nomad in some of the major restaurants of the time, from Luxemburg to New York, and ended up in Montréal some 18 years ago.
After many remarkable stints in the city, he took charge a little over a year ago of the L’Atelier Robuchon, named after the most starred chef in the world, Joël Robuchon. For his participation in the CCC, Gonzalez prepared a silky piece of Alberta bison loin, sculpted like a yin- yang sign, paired with freshly seared foie gras, a purplish blackberry coulis around a mound of squash puree, specked with flcks of edible gold leaf. A stunner!
Robert Beauchemin, Montréal CCC judge
Gold: Chef Alex Chen, Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar, Vancouver
Grande Finale Pairing: Sea Star 2016 Ortega, Pender Island
Kelowna is the hospitable city of the CCC, but it has not proven to be a home field advantage for previous British Columbia competitors, adding only more pressure in the kitchen. However, this year the exceptional culinary skills of Alex Chen and his talented brigade prevailed against all others. His experience in other competitions (a top 10 finish at the 2013 Bocuse d’Or in France, a bronze in the 2016 CCC) contributed to his cool and confident demeanor and impressive execution of three outstanding dishes.
Sprinting out of the gate in the Mystery Wine challenge, chef Chen composed an exquisite and expensive looking (on the frugal $500 Mystery Wine Challenge budget) terrine of Albacore tuna, side stripe shrimp and scallop with an apple and watermelon radish in a fragrant sunchoke dashi broth, which matched well with the 2016 Fort Berens Pinot Gris’s aromatics.
Chen’s Black Box dish was a winner — rabbit loin with stuffed mousse of leg meat, pan-fried flax seed-coated oyster and a wonderfully vibrant crisp slaw of apple, feta and kohlrabi.
The Grand Finale demonstrated his passionate and continuing search for culinary perfection. His menu not only listed the five species used but also the area of catch and the boat and captain. What a delight for supporters of Ocean Wise sustainable seafood. It was a truly memorable delicious dish by the hometown hero who prevailed in Kelowna. Congratulations chef!
Sid Cross, Vancouver CCC Judge