Chef Mark Filatow of Waterfront Restaurant and Wine Bar in Kelowna proved his culinary prowess on Saturday taking home the gold award at the Vancouver 2012 Gold Medal Plates competition held at The Westin Bayshore. Chef Filatow went head-to-head with nine of British Columbia’s finest culinary masters at the prestigious culinary competition and will go on to compete at the Canadian Culinary Championships, the Gold Medal Plates Finale, in Kelowna on Feb. 8 and 9, 2013.
Chef Filatow wowed the judges with a dish of Bar ‘M’ Ranch Lamb (Charcoal Grilled Loin, Moroccan Braised Belly, ‘Neck’ Merguez, Potato Doughnut), which was paired with Orofino 2010 ‘Scout Vineyard’ Syrah, Similkameen Valley.
Chef Quang Dang of West Restaurant and Bar in Vancouver, rose to the occasion as well, taking the silver medal. Chef Dang created Yarrow Meadows duck with Foxtrot Vineyards apricot preserves, Pinot Noir glaze and Agassiz chestnuts paired with Foxtrot 2009 Pinot Noir.
Taking the bronze medal was Chef Angus An of Maenam in Vancouver. His dish was Dom Gati of Salmon served with hot and sour tamarind and coconut broth, with green mango and lightly smoked spring salmon, paired with Cedar Creek 2011 Riesling.
“What an impressive evening,” said head judge James Chatto. “Each dish was so different, so unique. The judges agreed that these three chefs performed particularly well and each had wonderful wine matches.
“Angus An blew us away with the first dish of the evening: brilliant salmon with vibrant herbs and citrus. Quang Dang served a brilliant treatment of duck breast, duck confit, apricots every which way and chestnut puree.
“And our gold winner Mark Filatow, we loved his dish of lamb neck, belly and loin — pristine, imaginative and flawless. It’s going to be interesting having a Kelowna chef competing at the Canadian Culinary Championships in Kelowna.”
In the wine category, the Best of Show Awards went to Nichol Vineyard 2009 Syrah (Gold), Le Vieux Pin 2011 Ava (Silver) and Cedar Creek 2011 Riesling (Bronze)
“It was an incredible lineup of B.C. wines, said David Lawrason, Gold Medal Plates’ national wine advisor. “The unanimous winner, Nichol Vineyard 2009 Syrah, showed a terrific natural poise and purity.”
Music for the evening was provided by Canadian legend Jim Cuddy of Blue Rodeo and an all-star cast of Canadian entertainers.
The other chefs competing in Vancouver were: from Vancouver, Joe Campo (The Westin Bayshore Vancouver), David Gunawan (Wildebeest), Lee Humphries (C Restaurant), Taryn Wa (Savoury Chef Foods); from Oliver, Jeff Van Geest (Miradoro at Tinhorn Creek Winery); from Penticton, Darin Paterson (Bogner’s of Penticton); and from Tofino, Nicholas Nutting (The Pointe at the Wickaninnish Inn).
Gold Medal Plates is the ultimate celebration of Canadian excellence in food, wine, athletic achievement and entertainment. In addition to the finest food and excellent music, guests had the opportunity to mingle with 25 celebrated Olympians such as Marnie McBean (rowing), Steve Podborski (alpine skiing), Maëlle Ricker (snowboard), Curtis Myden (swimming), Erin McLeod and Melissa Tancredi (soccer) and Olympic gold, double silver and bronze medallist Adam van Koeverden (canoe/kayak) who emceed the event.
Proceeds from Gold Medal Plates go to the Canadian Olympic Foundation, supporting programs that further Canadian high performance athletes’ pursuit of excellence on the world stage — programs like Own The Podium and the COC’s Athlete Excellence Fund. Since 2004, Gold Medal Plates has generated $6 million for Canada’s Olympic and Paralympic athletes.
Judging the 2012 competition in Vancouver was: Chef John Bishop, Sid Cross, James Chatto (head judge), Barbara-Jo McIntosh, Andrew Morrison (B.C. senior judge and judge/referee), Lesley Stowe and last year’s Vancouver winner, Chef Rob Feenie. Each dish was judged out of 100 points, based on visual presentation (20), texture (20), taste (30), wine compatibility (10), originality (10) and wow factor (10).
Gold Medal Plates Vancouver also featured a silent auction as well as a live auction, with spectacular getaways with Olympians and Canadian entertainers to destinations such as South Africa, Provence, Chile, Tuscany and Kelowna for the Canadian Gold Medal Plates finals.
For more information, visit the Gold Medal Plates website www.goldmedalplates.com.