TORONTO — Samuel Sirois from ITHQ in Montreal is the winner of the Bocuse d’Or Canada competition.
The competition, held at the 2019 RC Show in Toronto this week, saw three contenders go head-to-head in a high-energy, two-hour battle for the chance to represent Canada at Boucuse d’Or in 2021. Competing chefs were selected from more than a dozen entrants by Bocuse d’Or Canada’s newly formed board of directors.
Sirois, along with chefs Gene Cormier of Euston Park Social in Moncton, N.B. and Tarik Belmoufid of Montreal’s Bistro 1843, were challenged to reinvent duck tourtiere — Bocuse style.
Modeled after the world-famous Bocuse d’Or, the event was judged by a panel featuring chef Lynn Crawford; Master Chef Canada judge, chef Alvin Leung; Mijune Pak, founder of FollowMeFoodie and judge on Top Chef Canada and Iron Chef Canada; chef Jean Pierre Challet; past Bocuse d’Or candidate, chef Trevor Ritchie; and Thomas Delannoy, president of Bocuse d’Or Canada’s board of directors.
“We applaud the culinary talents, skills and creativity of all four participants,” says Delannoy. “The national selection is the start of a two-year-long journey and we’re excited to be training in La Belle Province starting in the spring. We hope to continue to see the chefs and brands from across the country support the team and help us to provide Samuel Sirois the best chance to make it to the podium.”
Sirois will lead the Canadian team at the Americas selection competition in Mexico on the road to securing a spot in the final competition in Lyon, France in January 2021.
“I’m very excited to be the next contender for the Bocuse d’Or,” says Sirois. “I’ve dreamt about this moment and am extremely proud to be part of the line-up of great chefs to represent Canada at the biggest culinary competition on the planet. I look forward to working with the board and with chefs from coast to coast to put our best foot forward in 2021. I’m committed to train and give my best for the next two years as the representative of the Canadian restaurant industry. Today is our first step towards the podium, so we can show the world Canada’s food mastery and spotlight our unique local flavours.”
