Philippe Mouchel, President Bocuse d’Or Australia, has announced the next Australian Selection contest will be held at Foodservice Australia in Melbourne 2017.
The Australian Selection will take place at the centre of show on Tuesday 30 May 2017, with stadium seating for visitors to watch and cheer, as four chefs battle over five hours to prepare two courses from mandatory ingredients.
“Showcasing the Bocuse d’Or Australian Selection at Foodservice Australia will take the contest to the next level in this country, giving people the opportunity to watch the competition as they do in Selection contests around the world,” says Mouchel.
The current candidate, Dan Arnold, was selected at a competition held at Le Cordon Bleu in Melbourne under strict Bocuse d’Or competitions conditions. “It was fantastic to have the support of this esteemed culinary training school for the 2016 Australian Selection,” says Philippe, “and we look forward to continuing our relationship moving forward.”
“Holding the Selection at Foodservice Australia in no way impacts the selection criteria or stringent judging process, but it does better reflect the competition conditions the candidate will experience in Asia and Lyon, while also raising the profile of Bocuse d’Or in Australia,” he explains. “The candidate will also have ample time to prepare for the Asia-Pacific Selection in Singapore in April 2018.”
Tim Collett, Director of Foodservice Australia, says the show is the perfect forum for Bocuse d’Or in Australia. “As the only dedicated show for the hospitality industry, Foodservice Australia is the ideal venue for the Australian Selection,” he says. “It will be held in state of the art kitchens, custom-built at the centre of the show and surrounded by stadium seating.
“The Bocuse d’Or Australian Selection will follow two days of intense competition for the title of Chef of the Year, the most prestigious national contest for professional chefs in this country,” adds Collett. “Together, the two contests – one national, one international – will bring together the elite of our nation’s culinary talent.”
Philippe Mouchel comments that the Australian team is taken very seriously overseas, with Dan Arnold currently working and training with Serge Vieira in France in preparation for Bocuse d’Or in January 2017.
“Dan is a supremely talented and dedicated chef, and he is looking forward to representing his country next January,” says Mouchel. “I would like to see the significance of Bocuse d’Or recognised in this country and welcome the opportunity to take the competition to as relevant and as prestigious an event as Foodservice Australia.”
