Honours to the Irish
The Irish shamrock was in the ascendant in Wednesday's Salon Culinaire Live Theatre, sponsored by Caterplan, when the Panel of Chefs of Ireland National Culinary Team walked off with the honours in this year's Senior Cook and Serve competition.
The team, comprising chefs George Smith and Gary McDowell and waiter Ray Hingston, beat nine other competitors when they cooked and served a three-course meal accompanied by wine and coffee in one-and-a-quarter hours.
The meal comprised a starter of warm salad of scallops and lobster infused with strawberry and black pepper dressing, which was served with Robert Mondavi Fumé Blanc, Napa Valley 1997. This was followed by a main dish of roast loin of venison spiced with smoked paprika, served with apple and spinach rösti, turnip and a tarragon and truffle jus, which was accompanied by a Conde de Valdemar, Gran Reserva Rioja 1985. Dessert, served with Essencia Orange Muscat 1997, was a steamed chocolate pudding accompanied by Bailey's white chocolate ice-cream and a pistachio tuile.
