Of these, 10 young chef Olympians from France, Austria, Sweden, Nepal, UAE, South Korea, Mexico, Zimbabwe, Wales and Sri Lanka took up the challenge at the IIHM Campus in Delhi.
The first round of YCO 2025, held under the aegis of the International Institute of Hotel Management (IIHM) in partnership with the International Hospitality Council (IHC) London, was divided into two parts. The first one was a skill test where the contestants had to make three egg preparations in 30 minutes. The second test consisted of making a vegetarian dish and a Choux Pastry dessert in 180 minutes. The jury for the competition included technical and tasting judges where the technical judges made sure that the recipes were followed as well as cleanliness and hygiene were maintained by all the young chef Olympians. The final dishes were numbered and presented to the tasting judges, who marked these anonymous dishes on the basis of their taste.
Highlighting the magnitude of the competition, Dr. Suborno Bose, Chairman of International Hospitality Council (IHC), Founder YCO, and Chairman IIHM, said, “There are only three competitions in the world where 50 countries compete under one roof at the same time – Olympics, the Soccer World Cup, and the International Young Chef Olympiad. Over the years, YCO has gained a lot of recognition and respect from culinary and hospitality institutions across the world. As a result, the level of competition has been improving year on year. For YCO 2025, the briefing document was sent to the competitors in June and these student chefs have been practicing ever since for this competition. So, they are at the top of their game, which is reflected in their performance. I am excited seeing the level of competition this year and am looking forward to seeing their skills at the grand finale in Kolkata.”
Diwan Gautam Anand, Honorary President, IIHM College of Distinguished Fellows and Former Executive Vice President, ITC Hotels, was the Director for Round 1 of the competition in Delhi. Chef Andreas Muller, Acting Program Director (Western Cuisine Operations and Training) at the International Culinary Institute (ICI) of the Vocational Training Council (VTC), Hong Kong & Board Member of World Chefs Education, was the Lead Judge for the Delhi leg of the competition. Chef Parvinder Bali, Director at the School for European Pastry and Culinary Arts & Former Corporate Chef L&D at Oberoi Hotels & Resorts; Shaun Leonard, Food and Beverage Manager, Executive Chef & Culinary Program Leader at BHMS Business & Hotel Management School, Switzerland; renowned South African Chef Garth Stroebel; and Vineet Manocha, President-Culinary, Bikaji Foods International Ltd comprised the jury for the Delhi leg of the competition.
Speaking about the performance of the contestants in the Delhi round, Chef Parvinder Bali said, “I was the technical judge in Round 1 and my focus was on the health and hygiene aspects of the competition. It was interesting to see that some students were absolutely on the ball and they knew the exact processes such as how to set up and organise their stations. On the other hand, there were many who were making basic mistakes. The Choux Pastry has to go at a certain temperature in the oven, but some contestants were not very clear about it. It was a bell curve in the kitchen, but it was fantastic to watch the students coping up under immense pressure.”
According to Chef Garth Stroebel, “We had 10 great contestants today and the food they produced was phenomenal. I think it’s very hard for a young person to work in a foreign place with foreign equipment and they all did extremely well.”
The young chef Olympians gave each other a touch competition in an endeavour to secure a spot in the Top 10 and get closer to the coveted YCO 2025 Champion trophy and a cash prize of USD 5,000.
Sharing his experience at YCO 2025 so far, Sri Lankan contestant Rendage Senuka Basilu Perera said, “I got to hear about YCO the day I entered the hospitality industry and I have been wanting to come for this competition ever since. Now that I have been given a chance to represent my country at this competition, I have tried to put my best foot forward. Round one today was amazing and I think I did a good job. This is my first competition, so it’s a big learning experience. I have also received some constructive feedback from the judges on how to improve my dishes.”
Sabrina Di Costanzo Araujo from Mexico said, “Round 1 was quite challenging for me as the ingredients I practiced with back at home were different from what I found here. Moreover, I couldn’t manage my time very well during the competition. But I overcame those challenges and adjusted to the situation in order to deliver a plate for the judges to taste. I think my dessert tasted good and I am quite satisfied with the outcome today. I am now hoping to make it to the top 10.”
The top 10 Young Chef Olympians from Round 1 will advance to the Grand Finale in Kolkata, while those ranked from 11 to 20 will compete for the Plate Trophy and the remaining contestants will participate in the Dr. Bose Culinary International Challenge. The winners will be announced at the Closing Ceremony in Kolkata on February 8.
As part of the Delhi leg of YCO 2025, the ‘United World of Young Chefs’ event was held at the Monkey Bar at Vasant Kunj where the 10 student chefs and their chef mentors prepared and showcased the national dishes of their respective country to create awareness and break cultural barriers through the universal language of food. Extending its support to UWYC, Monkey Bar has launched a special menu comprising small plates of these 10 dishes, which people can enjoy at Monkey Bar till February 17. At this event, some culinary stalwarts from Delhi were also felicitated as the ‘Chef Icon of Delhi’. The awardees included Chef Gaurav Wadhwa, Culinary Head & Founder Director, Theos Food Pvt. Ltd.; Chef Brijesh Kumar, Executive Chef, Le Meridian Gurugram; and Chef Gagandeep Sawhney, Executive Chef, Shangri-la.
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