18 Dec 2013
To commemorate the 10th Anniversary of SPOON by Alain Ducasse, InterContinental Hong Kong organized an Educational Culinary Outreach Programme in which 10 talented Hong Kong Student Chefs won a "Day with Alain Ducasse" when the celebrated chef was back in Hong Kong on Friday, November 22nd.
Alain Ducasse dedicates himself actively to the training of professionals through “Ducasse Education”. InterContinental Hong Kong is also committed to training of the next generation of chefs and hoteliers, with approximately 65 trainees working in various areas of our hotel in 2013.
Building on this initiative, 10 talented professional culinary school students (who were selected following "SPOON’s 10th Anniversary Open Culinary Competition" held this fall) won "A Day with Alain Ducasse" on November 22, with the world famous chef helping to nurture Hong Kong's next generation of chefs.
InterContinental Hong Kong, under the guidance of SPOON Executive Chef Philippe Duc. organised an open culinary competition for Hong Kong chefs-in-training, with student chefs from a variety of Hong Kong's professional culinary schools taking part. The competition brief was to create a "spoon-sized dish" (or small dish that must be eaten with a spoon). The hotel’s culinary team short-listed 20 student chefs who then presented their spoon-sized dishes to our InterContinental Hong Kong / SPOON by Alain Ducasse judging panel during the competition on Nov 4th. Following the culinary competition, the hotel’s culinary judging panel selected 10 talented professional culinary school students (along with two of the hotel’s in-house culinary trainees).
These young chefs had the opportunity to experience “A Day with Alain Ducasse” on Friday, November 22nd during which they worked in the kitchen with the SPOON team, under the supervision of SPOON Executive Chef Philippe Duc and the watchful eye of Mr. Ducasse, to prepare an exclusive lunch for 15 top Hong Kong journalists who dined with Mr. Ducasse.
These top culinary students represented seven Hong Kong culinary institutes, as below:
Ø HITDC – VTC (Hospitality Industry Training & Development Centre) – 5 students
Ø HoSTS Department of IVE Chai Wan (at Haking Wong) – 1 student
Ø The Chinese University of Hong Kong – 1 student
Ø Open University of Hong Kong (LiPACE) – 1 student
Ø Hong Kong Culinary Academy - 2 students
Ø Hong Kong Polytechnic University - 1 of the hotel’s in-house culinary trainees
Ø New England Culinary Academy - 1 of the hotel’s in-house culinary trainees
Following the media lunch, the student chefs took part in a Q&A session with Mr. Ducasse, during which they received Mr. Ducasse’s insights, vision and advice for the next generation of Hong Kong’s top chefs.
As per Alain Ducasse, “Since I became a chef, I have always enjoyed sharing my knowledge. Through “Ducasse Education”, we now offer professional classes to share this knowledge, with the focus on French cuisine. We train both young students who will become professional cooks, as well as amateur chefs. “
He continued by saying, “To be successful as a chef, as in every job, you must have the desire to excel. You have to be passionate and work hard. You also have to keep an eye on the competition and always try to be the best. “
Commenting on the hotel’s “Day with Alain Ducasse” culinary outreach initiative, Christoph Travniczek, InterContinental Hong Kong’s Executive Assistant Manager, F&B, said, “InterContinental Hong Kong and Alain Ducasse share a commitment to nurturing Hong Kong's next generation of chefs and hoteliers. Our “Student Chefs Competition and Day with Alain Ducasse” have offered a unique opportunity for talented Hong Kong chefs-in-training to meet this world famous chef. It has also been an invaluable experience for Mr Ducasse to share his vision and passion with Hong Kong’s next generation of chefs.”
As per Vicky Yip, one of the HITDC Culinary students who took part, “It was an eye-opening opportunity for me to exchange skills among young culinary trainees and to able to talk with the world famous chef Alain Ducasse. The discussion did inspire me to know how important it is to focus on practicing cooking skills and sharing of experience and ideas.”
Lily Poon, a culinary student at IVE - HoSTS VTC at Haking Wong (Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education) added, “It was an invaluable opportunity to participate in the competition and to meet with the renowned world-class Michelin-starred Chef Mr. Alain Ducasse. I believe that I will never forget this day - November 22, 2013, as it was one of the most precious and memorable days in my life.”
Please click here for photos of the SPOON 10th Anniversary Student Chefs’ Day with Alain Ducasse.
Please click here for a brief video on the SPOON 10th Anniversary Student Chefs’ Day with Alain Ducasse.
InterContinental Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Tel: (852) 2721 1211 Fax: (852) 2739-4546 E-mail: hongkong@ihg.com.
Visit our website at www.hongkong-ic.intercontinental.com.
For further information and restaurant reservations, please call
+ 852 2313 2323 or e-mail: fb.hongkong@ihg.com
For further press information, please contact:
Carole L. Klein, Director of PR & Communications
InterContinental Hong Kong
Tel: (852) 2313 2335 / Fax: (852) 2721 5964
E-mail: carole.klein@ihg.com
