Gareth Caberry, newly appointed Head Chef at the Dublin Hilton, has won Gold at Hilton Worldwide’s European Culinary Challenge 2012. Gareth’s winning lamb dish was braised Carlow lamb shoulder fillet, stuffed Savoy cabbage, Romanesco puree, and heirloom baby vegetables with potato mousse-line.
Organised by Nestle Professional in collaboration with Hilton Europe, the event, which was held in the UK, saw top chefs from Hilton hotels across Europe competing in a pressurised kitchen environment. Having battled it out against chefs from more than 200 Hilton Worldwide hotels across Europe, Gareth competed in the final against two other shortlisted chefs from the UK, in an exciting cook-off that was judged by a panel of industry experts, including Michelin-Starred chefs. Gareth was awarded first place in the Select division of the competition.
Gareth said: “I am absolutely thrilled to have won this award for Hilton Dublin and it couldn’t have marked a better start for me at the hotel, which already has a great team working in the kitchens. Ireland is known for its wonderful hospitality and I believe that extends to our outstanding, quality food offering. The competition was extremely tough with many talented Hilton chefs taking part, which makes this prize all the more special. We’ve been serving up great local and seasonal dishes at Uisce restaurant at Hilton Dublin for many years and we’re ready for the next challenge.”
The competition was designed and created by Nestle and Hilton Europe to emphasise the value of secondary cuts of meat. Criteria included the use of lamb shoulder as the main protein, use of a starch and Nestle ‘Lamb Flakes’ a recently introduced product to the market.
The challenge set for contestants asked for the Nestle product to be used in an innovative way to highlight its diversity. Gareth believes that secondary cuts of meat are mis-understood and under-used. Secondary and third cut meats challenge the chef’s cooking techniques and also promote sustainable use of meat, ensuring that as much of the animal as possible is utilised.
Hilton Worldwide in Europe has established six food and beverage principles – quality, simplicity, authenticity, connectivity, profit, and pleasure.
