Hawksworth Young Chef Scholarship announced two Vancouver finalists
VANCOUVER, BC (May 31st, 2017): The Hawksworth Young Chef Scholarship is proud to announce Connor Sperling of Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar and Solomon Mason of Kelowna’s La Bussola as the finalists of 2017’s Vancouver Regional Heat, both of whom will move forward to the final competition this fall. The two young talents will compete against eight other chefs selected through nation-wide regionals for a chance at the Scholarship’s grand prize of $10,000 and a stage at an esteemed international restaurant.
Sperling and Mason secured the two top spots on the Vancouver heat using a select few pantry items supplied by Gordon Food Service Canada and Club House for Chefs to create their own unique and masterful dish. Both competitors executed this whilst still displaying an incredible attention to detail, unmatched expertise and a visually appealing plate that wowed the judges from start to finish throughout the challenge.
“This heat is really special to me as Vancouver is the place where my culinary career started” says the Scholarship’s founder & judge, David Hawksworth. “Each of these young B.C. chefs showed amazing potential and reminded me why this foundation is so important.”
Chef David Hawksworth and Chef de Cuisine, Chris Stewart of Hawksworth Restaurant, Bel Cafe and Nightingale were joined by a panel of revered Vancouver chefs & culinary insiders, including Mijune Pak of Top Chef Canada, Chef Lee Cooper of L’Abbatoir, Scott Jaegger of The Pear Tree and Lucais Syme of Cinara. Each judge worked together to assess each young chef’s expertise in the kitchen and final dish and ultimately, choose the regional winners. The competition was also followed by a celebratory collaborative dinner at Hawksworth Restaurant’s elegant York Room and was joined by the Vancouver finalists, regional judges and celebrity chefs, Vikram Vij and Adam Pegg.
With Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver regional heats now complete, the fourth and final competition will take place in Calgary on June 17th at SAIT Polytechnic. To find out more information or purchase tickets to the regional celebratory dinner held at Calgary’s renowned Charcut, please visit www.hawksworthscholarship.com
The Scholarship would also like to thank sponsors such as Air Canada, Acqua Panna & San Pellegrino, CIBC, Canadian Linen, GFS, Select Wines & Spirits, Club House and Zwilling J.A.Henckels for making each competition and collaborative dinner possible and for their support of the Scholarship as it continues to encourage the culinary stars of tomorrow.