There were seven culinary teams from JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa, JW Marriott Khao Lak Resort & Spa, Marriott Resort Phuket Merlin Beach, Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort, The Naka Island Resort & Spa Phuket, Renaissance Phuket Resort & Spa and The Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa Phuket who battled it out at the grand final of the culinary challenge.
The official opening ceremony was led by Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong, who attended the culinary challenge in order to encourage and support a new generation of young chefs in showcasing their best kitchen skills.
Every chef was in action at a cooking station fully equipped with ingredients, herbs and spices and all the necessary sources required for their efforts in the kitchen.
The secret and main ingredients were set with a core focus on locally sourced products and sustainability and included prawns from Sarasin Bridge, soft shell crabs from Phang Nga and mangoes.
It was a fun-filled culinary challenge where the young culinarians had an hour to create three dishes; brainstormed, prepared, cooked and presented to the judges.
On the judging panel were President of the Phuket Reporters Association Junjira Sittabut, Marriott International General Managers and hotel guests who got the opportunity to observe and taste all of the food at the cook-off and praised finalists for their work creativity, inspiration and story-behind the dishes.
“Putting People First – Take care of associates and they will take care of the customers” is Marriott founder’s philosophy and it has made Marriott International a great place to work for more than 85 years.
“Giving associates the opportunity to grow and succeed is part of the company’s DNA. As a people-first company, our core focus is definitely our associates. The culinary challenge today is a great opportunity to showcase and reinforce our commitment”, said Matthias Y. Sutter, General Manager, JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa.
The Winner of the culinary cook-off was JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa. The 1st Runner-Up went to Phuket Marriott Resort & Spa Merlin Beach and the 2nd Runner Up was Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa.
The grand prize was a round-trip air ticket and a three days, two nights stay at the Marriott hotel in Bali. Prizes and trophies were also awarded to the 2nd and 3rd placed chefs. All contestants received a certificate and hotel vouchers as recognition and appreciation of their efforts.