33,083 Miles to Diamond Head Gold 
For Ten Young Chefs

Imagine being under 27 of age (sporting fewer than five years professional culinary experience) and having recently been awarded one of the ten regional Chaîne Jeune Commis silver medals. Accompanying that silver medal was an invitation to travel thousands of miles to Hawaii for our national competition at Culinary Institute of the Pafific Kapiolani Community College in Honolulu. Such was the invitation gratefully accepted by the Chaîne's 2001 class of national competitors.

Collectively traveling some 33,083 miles, the ten competitors were brought in a day earlier than usual for mainland competitions. Thursday served as a time zone adjustment layer and a down-to-business orientation.

The competition structure is an exercise in what chefs do every day: assess available food sources, plan a menu accordingly, and produce courses as drafted for their customers, judges in this case. Three courses (appetizer, entrée, and dessert) must be prepared for four people. A strict timetable is given for this procedure: one-half hour to plan and write a menu; two and one-half hours to prepare the dishes, one-half hour to plate and present. Maximum point performance is scored as follows: taste, 20; presentation, 10; originality, 10; and production efficiency and cleanliness, 10. Penalty points are levied for tardiness, omission of items specified in the written menu and unused ingredients from a mystery basket of ingredients presented competition morning.

The next day, the first patrol of sleepy, stressed young chefs shipped out for the 8:00 AM start time, with the final competitor not finishing until nearly 4:00 in the afternoon. It was a day of exhilaration, tension, and exhaustion. By the end of the competition, camaraderie was the absolute winner. Never has a stronger bond of friendship and respect been witnessed at this competition.

Turnaround time to shower and suit up in their pristine Chaîne logo chef's jackets was brief before the appointed hour to form up for the grand gala award dinner hosted by Bailli Provincial Fred Honda, General Manager of the Halekulani Hotel. For the first time, the gala banquet celebrated two competition winners: Jeune Commis and Best Young Sommelier. Guests were seated as the grand parade of competitors bedecked with beautiful meili leis threaded into the Grand Ballroom of Halekulani.

The spotlight finally focused on the Jeune Commis champions as Conseiller Culinaire National Jacques Fox heralded the results of the day's culinary competition. Pacific Northwest competitor Chris Bennett was presented with the third place bronze medal, followed by the second place silver medallion awarded to South Central Chef Alex Friedman. Finally, the coveted first place gold medallion was bestowed upon Southeast Jeune Commis Steyn Van Wyk along with chin-high layers of leis presented by the spontaneous Hawaiian fan club in attendance. And so it was that Diamond Head gold had been sought and Diamond Head gold had been won. 

  By Ellen Hughes, Chargée de Presse Nationale 

About the Winner . . . Steyn Van Wyk

A rising young culinary star at The Breakers in Palm Beach with an infectious smile, South African born 25-year-old Chef Steyn Van Wyk first caught culinary fever in high school while working at the Carlton Hotel in Johannesburg. Subsequently, Van Wyk graduated from the Carlton's Hospitality Industry Training Program and followed his quest to master fine dining skills at The Breaker's. Executive Chef/ Chef Rôtisseur Matthias Radits reports, " Chef Van Wyk exemplifies the old school work ethic. He eagerly fills in any shift needed in the hotel's thirteen kitchens and in the process harvests ideas to augment his fine dining focus. Logging in many overtime hours each week, he remains enthusiastic about investing personal time in competition training." Married and the father of a 9-month-old daughter, Chef Van Wyk hopes to open his own French restaurant one day. 

 

See Last Year's Winner