[NEWS BITES] Local Detroit Area Chef Represents The United States In Inaugural World Hospitality Championship and Returns Home With a Gold Medal

And here is the press release:

The American Culinary Federation’s (ACF) Michigan Chefs De Cuisine Association (MCCA) is pleased to announce its President, Brian Beland, CMC®, and executive chef/director of food and beverage at the Country Club of Detroit was part of the ACF Team U.S.A. that was awarded a gold medal and came in second place at the inaugural Dubai World Hospitality Championship, Nov. 16–18, 2013 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Beland was one of seven chefs selected to be part of the ACF team in this prestigious competition that featured culinary masters from around the world who are well recognized on the international circuit and regularly compete in some of the world’s best known culinary competitions. The ACF team, representing the United States, competed against 11 other countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Russia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, United Arab Emirates and Wales. Singapore placed first, the United States came in second and Australia placed third.

The ACF team spent the last two months planning and preparing for this competition. Each team was required to present a cold food buffet including six tapas items, three plated appetizers, four salads, four protein platters, four centerpieces a hot-main course and a dessert buffet in six hours for 50 people and four judges. Teams were judged on mise en place, workstation and uniform cleanliness, culinary techniques, food safety, presentation of dishes, taste and food texture.

            
 “This was such an incredible experience representing the United States and the flavors of American cuisine on a international stage,” said Brian Beland, CMC®, executive chef/director of food & beverage, Country Club of Detroit, Gross Pointe Farms, Mich.; President, ACF Michigan Chefs de Cuisine. “It’s truly an honor to be part of the ACF team and I’m so proud of our tremendous accomplishment of placing among the top three teams in this world-renowned competition.”

The Dubai World Hospitality Championship, under the directive of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, was organized by Zabeel Palace Hospitality in cooperation with World Association of Chefs Societies and The Emirates Culinary Guild. To learn more about the Dubai Hospitality Championship, visit www.dwhc.ae.

About The Michigan Chefs de Cuisine:

The Michigan Chefs de Cuisine (MCCA) is the Southeast Michigan Chapter of the American Culinary Federation. It was founded in 1970 by Certified Master Chef Milos Cihelka, whose vision it was to create one of the most prestigious chef’s associations in the nation. Today, the Chapter consists of over 480 members. Chef Milos, now semi-retired but still teaching, was the chef/co-owner and proprietor of the renowned Golden Mushroom Restaurant in Southfield, Michigan. MCCA helps to provide opportunities for culinary education, professional growth, certification, competition and networking while supporting charitable organizations in the community. For more information, or to become a member, please visit www.mccachef.org or call Executive Director, Brian Lorge at 734.320.8738 or bflorge@comcast.net.

About the American Culinary Federation:

The American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF), established in 1929, is the premier professional organization for culinarians in North America. With more than 20,000 members spanning 200 chapters nationwide, ACF is the culinary leader in offering educational resources, training, apprenticeship and programmatic accreditation. In addition, ACF operates the most comprehensive certification program for chefs in the United States, with the Certified Executive Chef®, Certified Sous Chef® and Certified Executive Pastry Chef® designations the only culinary credentials accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. ACF is home to ACF Culinary Team USA, the official representative for the United States in major international culinary competitions, and to the Chef & Child Foundation, founded in 1989 to promote proper nutrition in children and to combat childhood obesity. For more information, visit www.acfchefs.org. Find ACF on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ACFChefs and on Twitter @ACFChefs.

Midwest Young Chef's Competition

On Saturday, March 21st the Confrérie de la Chaîne des Rôtisseurs will be hosting the Midwest Jeunes Commis Rôtisseurs Culinary Competition at Schoolcraft College. Schoolcraft College has very respected and internationally acclaimed one-year certificate programs in Culinary Arts, Culinary Baking and Pastry Arts, and Culinary Management. There is also an on-campus student-operated restaurant called The American Harvest (students work under the direction of award-winning Certified Master Chef Dan Hugelier), and many of their Chef instructors and students have won national and international competitions.

Students of the Culinary School as well as other area amateur chefs will be competing in this year's Midwest Young Chef's Culinary Competition, hosted by the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs. The Confrérie de la Chaîne des Rôtisseurs is an international gastronomic organization with roots dating back to 1248. They welcome both the industry professional and the amateur foodie into their fold, and are opening this event to the public.

The competition will be held at the Culinary School which is inside the VisTa Tech Building at 18600 Haggerty Rd. in Livonia. Young chefs will be preparing their dishes from behind glass windows and those curious to see what goes on in such an intense kitchen competition are invited to watch. Afterwards, there will be an awards ceremony, induction, and banquet at the College beginning at 6:30PM. Again, this event is open to the public.

The competition will ensue as follows:

Each competitor is to receive an identical mystery basket, permitting them to compose a
three-course menu of their choice prepared for four (4) people, consisting of individual
plates for Appetizer, Main Course, and Dessert. After examining the mystery basket,
competitors shall have 30 minutes to write out a three course menu, and only after the 30
minutes has elapsed, be allowed to commence preparation at their designated kitchen
station. They then have 3 hours to prepare the items and must begin the presentation to the
Jury within their designated 30 minute window (10 minutes for each course, consecutively,
and strictly timed).

Each of the three courses will be judged independently by the following criterion:

Taste - Maximum 15 points
• Balance of four basic tastes.
• Maximum 15 points, awarded by tasting judges.
• Flavors must work in harmony; no over-powering flavors.
• Appropriately seasoned food.
• Avoid competing flavors on the plate.
• Accurately cooked food items.
• Hot foods must be served hot, and cold foods must be served cold.

Presentation - Maximum 5 points
• Maximum 5 points, awarded by tasting judges.
• Judges will be looking for visually appealing presentations that show creativity and
innovation. Each entry must show a proficiency of skills using; contrasting or
complementary colors, shapes, flavors, sizes and with a variety of mediums while
maintaining consistent portion sizes.
• The portion must be appropriate to the dish and to the standard rules of nutrition.
• Strong visual impact and harmony of colors.
• Meat and vegetable juices should not make a dish look unappetizing.
• Points will be deducted for vegetables that are not cut/turned uniformly.
• Plate arrangements should be practical yet appealing and should comply with the current
industry trends.
• Must use more than 50% of each mandatory food item.
• Deductions will be made for:
o Inconsistent portioning
o Disproportional sauce and garnishing to main piece
o Unappealing presentations

Originality - Maximum 10 points
• New creation of dishes and preparation of food.
• Maximum 10 points, awarded by tasting judges.
• Primarily based on the originality of the artistic work and the degree of difficulty and
effort.

(There is also a separate judging criterion used by the kitchen judge for technique.)

See for yourself what Michigan's up-and-coming young chefs are capable of in the kitchen! The Young Chef's Competition Awards Banquet is $95.00 per person to attend, and must be paid for in advance. You may make checks payable to:

Robert S. Levine
Bailliage du Michigan
761 Falmouth Drive
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan 48304

There will also be another Confrérie de la Chaîne des Rôtisseurs dinner at Iridescence on Friday, March 20th (the evening before the competition) at 7:30PM for a cost of $140.00 per person. This will be an 8-course degustation menu with accompanying wines appropriate to the tastings. Reservations must be made in advance, make checks payable to above.

Viva la Chaîne!