LTC company crowns ultimate chef

Jan. 31—After a yearlong competition, Elisabeth Archer, chef at Grand Court Tavares in Florida, was named the Ultimate Chef America 2010 by Brookdale Senior Living.

The Ultimate Chef America competition consisted of six stops around the country: Phoenix, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Atlanta and Jacksonville, Fla. At each stop, two teams of four chefs from the region competed in a culinary competition. Each team prepared a four-course meal, which was judged on taste, presentation and creativity.

Archer’s winning dish was a simple triple berry tiramisu. Archer was born and raised in Nuremberg, Germany, and educated in nutrition and child development. She moved to the United States and worked as a cook at Fort Jackson in South Carolina. Archer also has worked at several hospitals and skilled nursing centers, before joining Brookdale Senior Living as a dining room manager at Grand Court Tavares in 2009.

According to Joska Hajdu, senior vice president of senior dining services, the competition was designed to promote healthy dining for seniors, build teamwork across the company’s chefs and communities, and educate residents and the greater community about progress in senior culinary services.

Brookdale Senior Living has more than 565 communities and 53,600 residents in 36 states. To read more about the Ultimate Chef America competition, click here for our initial story from the April 2010 issue of FoodService Director.