well, i went in the competition and presented my dish. in terms of execution and flavor, i think i got a B. the major problem was my potatoes. i couldn't find fingerling potatoes so i went ahead and cubed up from red potatoes instead. seasoning was dead on, but i guess some of the potatoes were undercooked. i was there with 7 other prep guys like myself and i think i presented a clean dish with sophisticated plating. a small arangement of the roasted potatoes on one end of a rectangular plate and my steak (tenderloin fillet) on the other end, topped with the mushrooms, a small green garnish, and a blob/smear of the pan sauce between the two. the chef really liked the sauce and wanted more of it on the dish rather than a condiment-like portion. the kitchen ran out of brandy so i couldn't use it to deglaze. i tried with red wine and the sauce turned sour. so as a last-minute attempt, i browned some butter up, grounded some pepper into it, dumped a quarter cup of white wine in there, reduced, cream, salted it, and finished it off with a pat of butter. turned out ok i guess since the chef liked it.
here were my competitor's dishes: along with a brief criticism expressed by the chef. the restaurant is in hawaii so you see a lot of asian and pacific rim flavors.
1. seafood and grits: scallops were over done.
2. beef wellington with a butter bean salad and sherry vinaigrette: beef was over done and plating was a tad on the complicated side
3. furikake (a japanese seasoning consisting of dried seaweed flakes and sesame seeds) crusted salmon, with a miso (fermented soybean paste) cream sauce on top of lemongrass rice: the plating was overly complicated and used a bowl instead of a plate. the result was the sauce ran over the fish and into the rice and overpowered it.
4. paplova (sp?) with a passion fruit sauce topped with starfruit, kiwi and strawberries: it was excellent. the chef wished that she could have incorporated more local fruits rather than fruits that have come over seas.
5. pan seared duck breast with orange mashed potatoes with a mango sauce and asparagus: breast was over cooked, too much sauce.
6. a korean dish featuring a spicy-sweet chili sauce tossed with cucumber, cabbage, with steamed rice cakes: it was a vegan dish, simplistic, but the chef had no real qualm with it other than the rice cake was store bought.
7. ravioli filled with goat cheese and pipikaula (a smoked meat... think really tender, and juicy beef jerky): the chef didn't get a chance to eat it because there was only two pieces and we all basically grabbed a fork and dug in for the tasting.
i wish i could attach photos for you guys.
