Scenes from the "Chefs Challenge" at the Downtown Farmers Market, Saturday, September 6.
Photos: Greg Thilmont
The 3rd annual Farmers Market Chef Showdown took place Saturday morning at the Salt Lake Farmers Market in Pioneer Park.
By 10:30 a.m., the competing chefs—Jerry Liedke from Tin Angel, Frody Volgger of Vienna Bistro and Chad Horton and Justin Shifflett from Metropolitan were already shopping the market for their groceries while Circus Brown from KRCL warmed up the crowd. Here came Frody, dragging a red wagon loaded with lamb, peaches, tomatoes, cheese and greens. The secret ingredient, to be used in one of the 3 required courses, was revealed: a veritable sculpture of fresh mushrooms—lobster, hen-in-the-woods and trumpets.
And they’re off!
Chopping, mixing, rolling, poaching, freezing and frying (the theme from Rawhidewould sound good here)—the chefs had 60 minutes to make all 3 courses. Metropolitan owner Karen Olson was there to cheer her kitchen boys on; Liedke’s tow-headed boys and their mother Kestrel were there to cheer him on. The judges—myself, Bill Allred from Radio from Hell and Andrew Wallace from the Downtown Alliance, who has dibs on this particular duty—waited at the tented table to taste each course.
It’s a weird and rushed procedure, judging food on the fly, like this: you have to fix the plate’s appearance in your mind, take a preliminary warm-up bite to get your buds used to the new flavors, take a second, serious bite (that means a little of each element on the fork) to judge the success of the flavor/texture marriage, then a moment for the post-impression.
I’m always, always, even after 25 years in the biz, amazed at what a trained and talented chef can come up with in such a short time. Kudos to all these downtown restaurants.
And especially to the members of the winning team at Metropolitan.
First course Vienna Bistro: Caprese salad of heirloom tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella with herbs and a drizzle of pumpkin seed oil Metropolitan: Cold heirloom tomato soup with a grilled cheese and wild mushroom sandwich Tin Angel: Giant goat cheese ravioli with lobster mushrooms in a sherried cream bisque Entrée Vienna Bistro: Roast lamb loin with rosti potatoes with mushrooms and ratatouille Metropolitan: Seared scallops with jalapeno jelly, caramelized figs and rose radish sprouts Tin Angel: Moroccan-spiced frenched lamb chop with Mediterranean vegetable saute and raita sauce
Dessert Vienna Bistro: Coupe cassis with fresh peaches Metropolitan: French toast with blackberry syrup and spiced peaches Tin Angel: Peach fritter with vanilla ice cream
I am so excited to see that Vienna Bistro is using pumpkin seed oil -- I use it all the time, and it's delicious as a simple salad dressing. I always bring it back to Vegas with me from my native Austria. I must stop by Vienna Bistro next time I am in SLC. How about opening a restaurant in Vegas?
A lack of serious ambition, a love of cooking and a degree in Latin naturally led to a career in food writing for Mary Brown Malouf. Her 25 years of experience has included stints as executive editor of D magazine in Dallas, Texas; executive editor at wine.com in Napa, California; and restaurant critic for The Salt Lake Tribune. Now, she’s the dining editor for Salt Lake magazine, where she writes about the food scene in Salt Lake City and beyond. Check in regularly for the latest restaurant news, great products from local purveyors, and conversation about all things gustatory.
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Reader Comments:
I am so excited to see that Vienna Bistro is using pumpkin seed oil -- I use it all the time, and it's delicious as a simple salad dressing. I always bring it back to Vegas with me from my native Austria. I must stop by Vienna Bistro next time I am in SLC. How about opening a restaurant in Vegas?
Nice video!