Auckland has turned up the heat, with the preparation underway for the 2023 Australasia Tapas Competition set to kick off on the 5th of September at Ignite Colleges in Manukau.
Skill, style and stamina will be showcased as 20 talented chefs go head-to-head for the top spot, with a place in the World Tapas Competition in Valladolid, Spain, up for grabs for the champion.
Chefs will be pushed to their limits with just 25 minutes to create eight dishes, and the aim of impressing the 2023 judging panel, including Simon Gault, Michael Meredith, and award-winning pastry chef, Callum Liddicoat.
Organiser of the 2023 competition and Strategic Partnership Association vice president, Chef Jasbir Kaur, said she was excited to be bringing the annual event back to Auckland for the fifth time, and that it will provide the opportunity of a lifetime for chefs who are eager to make their mark within the industry on both a local and international level.
“This is a contest where chefs can pit their skills against other industry trailblazers and truly push their culinary boundaries. Each tapas dish will be scored on presentation, originality, flavour and business potential. Every year the competition dishes get better and better, and for 2023 we are expecting contestants to knock the judges’ socks off,” said Kaur.
With the winner representing Australasia at the Wold Tapas Competition, and an all-experiences paid trip to Spain, the stakes are high for competitors. The competition has previously fast-tracked the careers of rising talent within the culinary industry, with SkyCity chef, Sheyun (Dani) Chun crowned the champion in 2018, and Auckland-based chef, Frederick Wong, taking second place in 2022.
Wong said that the ten days he spent in Spain opened his eyes to the world of tapas, and that it was vital to up-the-anti in order to compete at the Spanish level of expectation. He said that although Spanish tapas are simple in presentation, they are very unique in flavour, which he is trying to implement at Poni Commercial Bay, where he is the head chef.
“Last year was such an amazing year for me, not only representing New Zealand in Spain but also placing second in the World Tapas Competition. It was a real milestone and has inspired me to keep exploring tapas, and the world,” said Wong.
The Australasia Tapas Competition is sponsored by E-Spain, UNOX, HTT (Hospitality Training Trust), Great Taste NZ and Nestlé. Spectators are welcome to watch the event in person.
