Food Circus Supermarkets Wins “Best Chef 2016” Award
Food Circus Foodtown Supermarkets last week won the highly-anticipated Best Chef 2016 award at the New Jersey Food Council’s inaugural “Supermarket Chef Cook-off Challenge” during the Trade Relations Conference in Atlantic City. The cook-off provided an opportunity for New Jersey retail food industry chefs to showcase their culinary skills and compete for NJFC’s highly-coveted cooking award.
Culinary teams from four New Jersey supermarkets participated in the competition, in which they created an entrée and dessert in the Viking Kitchen at Harrah’s Resort within a specified amount of time. Each entrée and dessert was scored in three categories – plating, taste, and creativity. Taking top honors at the competition was Miguel Morales and Marisa Ricardo from Food Circus Foodtown Supermarkets of New Jersey. The winning chef’s served the judges Pan Seared Sea Scallops with Mole Sauce and for dessert Plantains and Apple Walnut Crepes.
“This was definitely one of the highlights of this year’s Trade Relations Conference,” said Linda Doherty, NJFC President. “The chefs did an amazing job and their creations were both beautiful and delicious. We expect this filling and exciting competition to become an annual tradition.”
Also competing were Chef Daniel Arturo and Sous Chef Rocco Tesorito of ShopRite of Greater Morristown, Village Food Garden; Chef Denny Siswanto and Sous Chef Preston France of Wegmans Food Market; and Chef Anthony DeBerto, Jr. and Kimberly Sullivan of Kings Food Market. Judging the competition were members of the 2016 Leadership Development Class, and Alfredo Varela, Executive Banquet Chef at Harrah’s.
The New Jersey Food Council is the Garden State’s preeminent trade association representing 1,200 retail food stores, wholesalers, manufacturing and service companies that collectively employ more than 200,000 associates in NJ.