Gold Over St. Lucia

SWEDISH BORN CHEF BOBO BERGSTROM OF ST. LUCIA NAMED CARIBBEAN CHEF OF THE YEAR AT CARIBBEAN CULINARY FEDERATIONS TASTE OF THE CARIBBEAN 2003, JAMAICA
~ St. Lucia Cops 8 Medals ~

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (October 7, 2003)  Bobo Bergstrom, director of culinary services at the Windjammer Landing Village Beach Resort, was named Caribbean Chef of the Year 2003 for his individual entry in competition for the Caribbean Food and Beverage Awards of Excellence among 11 Caribbean national teams at the Renaissance Jamaica Grande, Ocho Rios, Jamaica, October 2-5, 2003. The St. Lucia Culinary Team, composed of Bergstrom; Gilroy Samuel, pastry chef of Windjammer Landing; Perpetua Busby, from Capones Restaurant; and Rajah Pillay, executive chef of The Body Holiday at Le Sport, won two gold medals, one in the preliminaries and one in the final competition, in the team category. The awards, highest honors for food and beverage professionals in the Caribbean region, culminated three days of events at Taste of the Caribbean, annual showcase for the development and refinement of Contemporary Caribbean Cuisine, sponsored by the Caribbean Culinary Federation (CCF) and the Caribbean Hotel Association (CHA).
Pastry Chef Gilroy Samuel demonstrated his personal best in patisserie, winning recognition as Team Competition Outstanding Dessert - with his creation Red peppercorn, vanilla and Malibu poached pineapple in its own syrup, with jelly coconut mousse, sugar nest, and zabwiecco ice cream - while Rajah Pillay and Perpetua Busby won silver medals in the individual Chef of the Year Competition. Bartender Marcus Henry, bartender and bar manager at Sandals Grande, earned a gold and a silver medal. Meanwhile, individual St. Lucia competitor Alvin Philip, sous chef at Sandals Grande St. Lucian, earned a gold medal in the individual fish category.
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TASTE OF THE CARIBBEAN 2003  2

The competition brought teams of chefs, who won local culinary contests in their home countries, to Taste of the Caribbean 2003, for qualifying rounds of "live kitchen" competition in which each team prepared a 3-course meal for 40 persons in under 4 hours.
"We demonstrated our personal best and exchanged skills and information with a network of professionals, members of the press and the public who are interested in the culture and cuisine of our region. It was an inspiring and educational experience for everyone who attended," said Peter Rousseau, President of CCF.
Teams (in the preliminaries) and individuals from Gold Medal teams (who advanced to the finals) competed for point scores according to standards for professional competition set by the American Culinary Federation (ACF), not against each other. The scoring system provides clear criteria for excellence and is unaffected by the relative levels of the competitors skills.
Officials for the competitions were Head Judge, Rick Crossland, Senior Vice President, Culinary and Beverage; Bahama Breeze; Augusto Schreiner, Executive Chef and Owner, Augustos Cuisine (Puerto Rico); Klaus Friedenreich, CMC, AAC, CHE, Director, Culinary Arts Program, The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale; Kerry Beadle CEC, CFE, Department Chair of Hospitality Technology, Morrisville State College (NY); Timothy Murray, Corporate Executive Chef, Culinary Development, Peer Food; Hendrik Kolenbrander, Corporate Executive Chef; Hans Schenk, Food & Beverage Consultant (Jamaica).
Beverage competitions were judged by Robert Renovales, Director of West Coast Operations, Worldbeverages Logistics Inc., and Josui Merced-Reyes, Food & Beverage Consultant, El Buen Vivir and Pleasure in Puerto Rico Host.
Taste of the Caribbean 2003 was hosted by the Jamaica Hotel & Tourist Association, Jamaica Tourist Board, Jamaica Cultural Development Commission, and the Renaissance Jamaica Grande Resort, with the sponsorship of Air Jamaica Ltd., Bahama Breeze, Digicel, International Development