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(POSTED: May 1, 2009)
Taste of Nova Scotia Cutting Edge Culinary Competition
Chef Renée Lavallée Wins Taste of Nova Scotia Cutting Edge Culinary Competition
April 28, 2009 - Halifax, NS – Fast, fervent and fun, the first Taste of Nova Scotia Cutting Edge Culinary Competition took place from April 24 to 26 at the annual Saltscapes Exposition. Ten Taste of Nova Scotia chefs faced-off on the culinary stage and executive chef Renée Lavallée of the Five Fishermen restaurant took home first prize.
“It was an honour to compete in this competition...I was very surprised when the winner was announced given the tremendous amount of talent that I was up against,” says Lavallée. “It was a blast being up on the Taste of Nova Scotia stage with a member of the audience as my sous-chef.”
Chef Lavallée was given 45 minutes to create plates for the judges and samples for the audience using her black box ingredients of local maple syrup, asparagus and lamb. The Taste version of a black box competition was a friendly, fun and entertaining way to promote Taste of Nova Scotia restaurants, chefs and producer products.
“Every year we want to ensure that Saltscapes-goers experience all that Taste has to offer,” says Taste of Nova Scotia communications and event manager Christine White. “This year we brought in the competitive black box element. Members of the audience participated as sous-chefs, they voted for their favorite chef and were able to ask questions directly to the chefs. We wanted to make this an exciting and educational Nova Scotia culinary experience for all involved.”
Dueling chefs over the three days of Saltscapes included Chef Michael Howell (Tempest Restaurant), Chef Shaun Zwarun (DesBarres Manor Inn), Chef Renée Lavallée (Five Fishermen), Chef Dennis Johnston (FID Resto), Chef Earlene Busch (Chanterelle Country Inn & Cottages), Chef Collin Stone (O'Carroll's), Chef Terry Vassallo (Trattoria della Nonna), Chef Peter Welton (Port Pub & Bistro), Chef Alan Crosby (White Point Beach Resort) and Chef Rick Ogilvie (The Tin Fish).
Final scores for the competition were compiled based on a combination of the judges' marks and votes from the audience. For more information about The Cutting Edge, Taste of Nova Scotia and its members visit www.tasteofnovascotia.com.
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For more information please contact:
Christine White
Communications & Event Manager, Taste of Nova Scotia
Phone: (902) 492-9291, ext 115
Cell: (902) 880-2180
Email: christine@tasteofnovascotia.com
Website: www.tasteofnovascotia.com
About Taste of Nova Scotia
Taste of Nova Scotia is a unique, province-wide marketing program, whose
members are committed to offering the very best culinary experiences and
products that Nova Scotia has to offer. The Taste of Nova Scotia membership
base includes more than 100 quality food producers and processors, as well
as a collection of the best restaurants in the province. www.tasteofnovascotia.com
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