Global Gourmet 2015 winning chefs visit Le Cordon Bleu New Zealand

Global Gourmet 2015 “Chef par Excellence” is one of the largest and most respected culinary competitions in Asia, attracting over 850 Professional Chefs from around the world, was recently held in Beijing in October 2015. As part of their prize packages the winning Chefs were asked to pack their bags and make the 13 hour journey to New Zealand. Le Cordon Bleu International has been a sponsor of this great event for a number of years and having previously hosted winning chefs in London and Paris, it was the New Zealand Institutes turn to showcase the best of our great country.

The winning chefs visiting New Zealand were:

Chef Philippe Bruneau – Executive Chef, The W Guangzhou
Chef Andy Choy – Executive Chef Brasserie Flo, Beijing
Chef Wei Wang – DaDong Restaurant, Beijing
Chef Wai Kai Choy – Grand Hyatt Macau
Chef Hao Wang – Hilton Wangfujing, Beijing

The Chefs and accompanying media duly arrived into Wellington on Tuesday 15th December for four days of, what would turn out to be, an amazing experience!

They dined at some of the capitals finest establishments, imbibed on some of the region’s best wines, visited a working farm, spent a wonderful afternoon at Wharekauhau Lodge in the expert hands of Beef and Lamb New Zealand and Chef Mark Soper. Single handedly ate most of New Zealand’s quota in Salmon and Beef and even managed to fit in a 4 hour mystery box challenge for the students at Le Cordon Bleu. Chef battled Chef, showcasing their skills, incredible modern techniques and creative guise, all with the same ingredients and under the watchful eye of over 50 students and the Chefs of Le Cordon Bleu.

Their visit culminated with the Institutes' end of year graduation, where the Chefs were invited to be the guests of honor and even participated in MC duties of the ! A leisurely last night at Whitebait finished off a truly memorable visit. New Zealand’s incredible produce, stunning scenery, along with its vibrant and delicious cuisine and reputation for world class culinary training, will long be remembered by our guests!