CHEFS TO COMPETE FOR TEAM USA TITLE
Jeffery Hayashi, chef de cuisine at Honolulu’s Senia restaurant, has been named a finalist vying to represent the United States in the prestigious Bocuse d’Or culinary competition.
Hayashi’s commis, or assistant, William Barrera of Roy’s Beach House, will compete at his side Nov. 11 at the Culinary Institute of America’s Copia campus in Napa, Calif. The challenge will be to complete a menu of dishes over a period of five hours and 35 minutes.
The 13-judge panel includes pastry chef Michelle Karr-Ueoka of MW Restaurant; honorary judges include Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud.
The winning pair becomes Team USA, and begins training in Napa for the 2021 Bocuse d’Or in Lyon, France. The Ment’or BKB Foundation selected the finalists and will oversee training.
The biennial Bocuse d’Or, honoring renowned French chef Paul Bocuse, was founded in 1987. It has been won by an American team just once, in 2017, led by Mathew Peters, then executive sous-chef at Keller’s Per Se in New York.
Hayashi and Barrera will compete against teams headed by Nyesha Arrington of California and Scott Muns of Washington, D.C.
FESTIVAL PROMOTES A TASTY, MEAT-FREE DIET
“Life is ono when you eat pono,” say flyers and posters for this year’s Vegfest O‘ahu, a daylong event Saturday that’s built around plant-based cooking and eating, and sustainable lifestyles.
The free festival, 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Frank Fasi Civic Grounds (by Honolulu Hale), includes more than 50 booths offering vegan dishes, cooking demos, new vegan food products, yoga and dance classes, eco apparel and sustainable household products, education about health, the environment and animal welfare, and entertainment. A few details:
>> Food for sale: Mochiko chik’n bowl, kakiage tempura, “no pork” kim chee manapua, cauliflower shwarma wrap, jackfruit tacos, falafel waffles, mushroom tamales, various desserts and much more.
>> Chef demos: Beet Box Cafe’s Katie Dobkin prepares BBQ Soy Curls; Paul Onishi, representing Down to Earth, Healthy Loco Moco; Umeke Market’s Mama T. Gonsalves, Chickpea Taco Salad; Edgar Edge and Gordon Au of Adventist Health Castle, Sushi Burger and Vegan Pho; and dietician Kim Oshita of Kaiser Permanente, Local-Style Cauliflower Rice
>> Educational talks: “How to Get Plastic Out of Your Diet” and “How to Solve Climate Change Today,” plus more
Parking is free. The civic grounds are at 558 S. King St. Visit VegFestOahu.com.
JAMES BEARD REGIONS REALIGNED
The James Beard Foundation on Tuesday announced changes to its regional categories, which could put Hawaii in a better competitive position for the foundation’s annual Restaurant & Chef Awards, the nation’s top culinary honors.
Hawaii has been competing since 2007 in a region that includes all of California. No Hawaii chef has even made the finalists’ list in that time.
Beginning with nominations for the 2020 awards, California will be in its own region; Hawaii will be in a new Northwest & Pacific category with Alaska, Oregon and Washington.
This region is aligned more as it was in years when Hawaii chefs Roy Yamaguchi, Alan Wong and George Mavrothalassitis won top chef awards.
The foundation, in a statement, said it uses “demographic consultants to analyze census data and the shifting restaurant landscape” to assess its regional categories.
