City v country: Hunter chefs stand tall in food fight
“I”ll be back next year to be beaten once again,” laughed top chef Colin Fassnidge at the end of the 7th Annual Food Fight at Cypress Lakes on Monday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
His team of top notch Sydney chefs, including Matt Kemp of Q Station, Warren Turnbull of Chur Burger and Justin North of Hotel Centennial were trumped by the local lads in the Hunter Culinary Association’s popular cook-off.
In the Hunter corner, Troy Rhoades-Brown of Muse Restaurant and Muse Kitchen, Chris Thornton of Restaurant Mason, Garreth Robbs of Bistro Molines and Josh Gregory of EXP. Restaurant produced knockout dishes to win the bout.
In the head-to-head food battle, 375 people in the marquee were served two entrees, two mains and two desserts, side by side, without knowing which team created each dish.
After each course we all voted for our favourites, raising our hands and waving cards.
Petuna ocean trout featured in both entrees, roo and beef fought it out for main, and lemon and chocolate competed in the dessert section.
And yep, as you’d expect, every dish was matched with a Hunter Valley wine - thanks First Creek, Scarborough, McGuigan, Tulloch and Usher Tinkler Wines for some good drinking.
It was a fun day with hilarious one-liners from Fassnidge, friendly banter and a charity auction of gourmet food and wine experiences with proceeds going to the Brett Graham Scholarship Fund, which supports the region’s young chefs.
