Regional Culinary Challenge winners to compete for top award at NACUFS National Conference

Six chefs, champions from regional competitions held around the country, will compete in a gastronomic tour de force during the National Association of College & University Food Services (NACUFS) 2023 Culinary Challenge on Thursday, July 20 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor in Baltimore.

More than 40 collegiate chefs from NACUFS member institutions in six regions qualified to face off in competitions throughout March during the NACUFS 2023 Spring Conference Series. Each of the winners—representing the Pacific, Continental, Midwest, Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Southern NACUFS regions—will now advance to the final competition, held as part of the NACUFS 2023 National Conference, July 19- 22.

Photo: Chef Jacob Gandy of the University of Utah

NACUFS President Kerry Paterson, director of campus dining and catering at Oregon State University, said competing in the challenge was his first experience with NACUFS back in 2002.

Photo: Chef Jeffrey MacDonald of the University of Massachusetts

“The Culinary Challenge is near to my heart – so much work and preparation goes into it,” Paterson said. “This event presents a rare opportunity for these incredibly dedicated, back-of-the-house chefs to show off their passion and rally their schools and communities around them. The competition brings together the dining staff, their institutions and entire regions with a friendly rivalry, showing the impressive talent and skill within collegiate dining as a whole.”

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Photo: Chef Chad McDonald of the University of Houston

The competitors are…

• Chef Jacob Gandy of the University of Utah

• Chef Jeffrey MacDonald of the University of Massachusetts

Photo: Chef Chad McDonald of the University of Houston

• Chef Chad McDonald of the University of Houston

• Chef Héctor Giancarlo Pérez-Scolari of the University of California San Diego

• Chef Athan Spanos of Pennsylvania State University

•Chef C. David Wolf of The Ohio State University

Photo: Chef Chad McDonald of the University of Houston

The NACUFS Culinary Challenge was created in 2001 and recognizes the extensive culinary expertise within collegiate foodservice. Each year, a protein is selected—this year, a trio of pork—which competitors must use to create an original recipe to form a nutritionally balanced plate. The live competition, adjudicated by the American Culinary Federation (ACF), begins at the regional level.

Photo: Chef C. David Wolf of The Ohio State University

ACF judges are on hand at all competitions to judge and provide feedback, making each event a valuable learning experience for competitors. During both the regional and national competitions, the individual creations are judged based on a 100-point scale assessing organization, cooking skills, culinary technique and taste to determine who will take home the NACUFS title or ACF medal.

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The 2023 Culinary Challenge is sponsored by US Foods, Cintas and Hormel Foods.