The auditorium of the Kursaal Bern was filling up for the Cuisinier d’Or (FR) / Goldene Koch (DE) (Golden Chef) competition 2023. I watched as one of the five finalists used something like an ice cream scoop on a raw celery root to make perfect spheres. Dozens of supporters wore t-shirts emblazoned with the name of their favorite finalist. The sound of drums and cow bells permeated the competition, which at times felt like a raucous sporting event, even though its participants were wearing chef hats.
As in years past, after forgoing a live audience in 2021 due to the pandemic, this year’s final for Cuisinier d’Or took place once again before a crowd of over 1,000 people. Shaun Rollier, chef de partie at the Hotel Restaurant Valrose in Rougemont won the golden trophy this year.
Switzerland’s National Culinary Competition
Organized by KADI, the Cuisinier d’Or is considered to be Switzerland’s national culinary arts competition. Since 1991, the golden chef trophy has been awarded 19 times, with the 2023 competition celebrating its 20th anniversary.
For the final, five chefs cooked before the live audience. They qualified for this last stage during the semi-final round held on January 30, 2023, at the Trafo in Baden. Here are the five finalists:
- Daniele Angelosanto, Restaurant de l’Hôtel de Ville, Crissier (Vaud)
- Mario Garcia, mariogarcia GmbH, Horw (Luzern)
- Robin Höfer, Restaurant Ossiano at the Hotel Atlantis, Dubai
- Janic Mühlemann, Restaurant Giardino at Kursaal Bern (Bern)
- Shaun Rollier, Hôtel Restaurant Valrose, Rougemont (Vaud)
The Winning Dishes
At the finale of the competition in Bern, the chefs were allotted 5 hours and 30 minutes. During this time, they had to prepare two sets of dishes with 12 servings each. The fish course was presented first, after 4 hours and 15 minutes. Then, the meat dish was served 1 hour and 15 minutes later. Each chef had one commis (assistant) to help them.
For the fish course, the finalists had to incorporate the following ingredients:
- 3 Swiss Arctic char weighing approx. 800 to1000 grams each, gutted
- 3 separate vegetarian sides
- a single sauce
- fromage frais (fresh cheese) and hazelnuts
Here is Shaun Collier’s winning menu for the fish course:
- Arctic char, herbs, fresh cheese – Omble chevalier, herbes, fromage frais
- Potatoes, Cajun spices and red onion – Pommes de terre, épices cajuns, oignon rouge
- Celery root, snow peas and shelled peas – Céleri, pois mange-tout, petits pois
- Asparagus, potatoes and hazelnuts – Asperges, pommes de terre, noisettes
- Hollandaise sauce – Sauce hollandaise
For the meat course, the finalists had to include these ingredients:
- Swiss veal fillet, short cut, approx. 1.5 kilograms
- 2 Swiss veal tongues, approximately 500 grams each
- 3 separate sides
- one sauce
- rhubarb and pink pepper
And finally, here is Shaun Collier’s winning menu for the meat course:
- Swiss veal filet, mushrooms and pink pepper – Filet de veau suisse, champignons, poivre rose
- Swiss veal tongue, red shallots and chives – Langue de veau suisse, échalotes rouges, ciboulette
- Leeks, bacon and rhubarb – Poireau, lard, rhubarbe
- Morels, egg yolk and praliné of porcini mushrooms – Morilles, jaune d’œuf, praliné de cèpes
- Carrots, herbs and spices – Carottes, herbes, épices
- Veal stock – Jus de veau
Additional Prizes
Additional winners from the 2023 competition are as follows:
- 2nd place: Daniele Angelosanto
- 3rd place: Mario Garcia
- Winner of the public vote (i.e., People’s Choice Award): Daniele Angelosanto
- Best commis (junior chef): Colin Gervaix
Jury Members for Cuisinier d’Or 2023
Led by Frank Giovannini, Executive Chef at the Restaurant de l’Hôtel de Ville de Crissier, the jury featured distinguished members of Switzerland’s gastronomy industry.
- Franck Giovannini, Restaurant de l’Hôtel de Ville, Crissier
- César Troisgrois, La Grande Maison Troisgros (FR)
- Pierre-André Ayer, Restaurant Le Pérolles, Fribourg
- Paul Cabayé, Restaurant Glacier, Grindelwald
- Marco Campanella, La Brezza, Ascona und Arosa
- Stéphane Décotterd, Maison Décotterd, Montreux
- Laurent Eperon, Sternekoch
- Rolf Fliegauf, Restaurant Ecco, Ascona
- Tobias Funke, Gasthaus zur Fernsicht, Heiden
- Stefan Heilemann, Hotel Widder, Zürich
- Christoph Hunziker, Schüpbärg-Beizli, Schüpfen
- Silvia Manser, Restaurant Truube, Gais
- Christian Nickel, Park Hotel, Vitznau
- Guy Ravet, Grand Hôtel du Lac, Vevey
- Marie Robert, Restaurant Le Café Suisse, Bex
- Marcel Skibba, Schloss Schauenstein, Fürstenau
LE CUISINIER D’OR, Concours national d’art culinaire, Thunstettenstrasse 27, CH-4900 Langenthal, +41 (0)62 916 05 00, info@goldenerkoch.ch.