Joseph Tran to compete at 42nd Annual La Chaine des Rôtisseurs event in Taiwan in September 2018
Congrats to Joseph Tran, from Victoria’s Inn at Laurel Point, who won the gold medal and the Fulgence Charpentier Trophy at the 2017 La Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Jeunes Chefs (Young Chefs) Rôtisseurs Competition held in Ottawa, ON on October 27th. The silver medal was presented to Vancouver’s Nathan Sundeen from Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar and the bronze medalist was Calgary’s David Ryc from The Fairmont Banff Springs. Winnipeg’s Darnell Banman from the St. Charles Golf Country Club was recognized for having the highest kitchen score and received the Chef Paul Mastalir Award for Kitchen Excellence along with a Wüsthof Knife attaché set.
As the winner of La Chaîne des Rôtisseurs’ 2017 Regional Jeunes Chefs Rôtisseurs competition, Joseph will now go on to represent Canada at the 42nd Annual Concours International des Jeunes Chefs Rôtisseurs, to be held in Taiwan in September 2018.
This national competition, open to young cooks under the age of 27, was sponsored by Le Cordon Bleu, Wüsthof Knives, Chefs-Hat Inc., and Cattle Boyz Sauces. Eight competitors from across Canada, chosen through selection competitions held in their respective local areas, were given four hours in which to compose a menu and prepare a three-course meal (an appetizer, a main course and a dessert) for four persons using ingredients presented in a “black box”. In this year’s black box, the competitors found the following compulsory items: one seabass (800/900g); eight units scallops U10; 3 oz. Acadian Sturgeon caviar; 250ml fish fumet, Sq squid ink, 2 kg guinea fowl; 100g ground lean veal; 500 ml brown chicken stock and 300g of Black Chocolate (Valhrona); along with various other vegetables, fruits, liquors and fresh herbs. Contestants were judged on taste, originality, creativity, presentation, portion size, nutrition, dress, kitchen cleanliness and timing by a team of Canadian professional and nonprofessional judges
At 25 years of age, Joseph has already been cooking for a decade, he started in his father’s restaurant in London, Ontario as a dishwasher and his hard work brought him to the line. Food has always been an important part of Tran’s life, and although slim in build, he loves to eat! His favourite meals are home-made dishes, such as a vermicelli bowl with spring rolls and, originating from Vietnam, his background has significantly influenced his style of cooking. Playing with flavour and texture profiles has his dishes dancing between sweet and sour, and crispy and chewy, each bite a surprise to the senses.
The Chaîne des Rôtisseurs is an international gastronomic society devoted to promoting fine dining and preserving the camaraderie and pleasures of the table. The society has both non-professional “gastronome” and culinary professional members in more than 75 countries around the world. For more information on the society in Canada and internationally, please visit the website at www.chainecanada.org.
