Mars Foodservice has announced the winners of the fourth “DOLMIO PROFESSIONAL® & UNCLE BEN’S PROFESSIONAL® Foodservice Student Catering Challenge”
Having been tasked with preparing, cooking and serving two globally inspired, free-from dishes within 60 minutes, both Dominykas, Anirudh and the other six student finalists wowed an expert panel of judges with their creative dishes and ability to cook under pressure as Cyrus Todiwala, celebrity chef and judge of the DOLMIO PROFESSIONAL® & UNCLE BEN’S PROFESSIONAL® Foodservice Student Catering Challenge delights:
“The level of student entries has been fantastic, particularly given the challenging and on trend ‘Free-From World Food’ Brief!
It’s superb to see these students cooking so professionally, particularly given that they were faced with the daunting task of cooking on a big-stage in front of a knowledgable audience.”
For Cyrus and each of the other judges, one student particularly stood out, not least because of his professionalism and creativity, but for his outstanding skill as Cyrus reflects:
“Dominykas truly deserves all the credit! He had brilliant technique and wasn’t afraid to take on challenging dishes – he was very gutsy!”
In a unanimous judging decision, Dominykas Salvaitis from University of West London was awarded the prize for the overall ‘Best Free-From, World Food Menu’ and also the ‘Best Dessert’, having served up two Indian inspired Vegetarian/Gluten-Free dishes – Dholka & Lentil Stew’ for main course and ‘Steamed Szechuan Patoli’ for dessert – which were created with Uncle Ben’s Professional® Basmati Rice and Szechuan, Tikka Masala, Arrabita and Black Bean ready-to-use sauces.
“To win the Dolmio Professional® & Uncle Ben’s Professional® Foodservice Student Catering Challenge feels amazing, particularly having seen the amazing standard of dishes that all of the other finalists served up!”
Anirudh Gosain from University College Birmingham, winner of the ‘Best Main Course’, also shares in Dominykas’s delights:
“The 2020 Dolmio Professional® & Uncle Ben’s Professional® Foodservice Student Catering Challenge was actually the first competition I’ve ever been involved in, so I’m really delighted to have won ‘Best Main Course’ and to see my hard work pay off.”
Both students have won £200 of Amazon vouchers to spend as they please, with Dominykas winning an additional £400 of Amazon vouchers as well as an experience at a top UK restaurant for winning the ‘Best Free-From, World Food Menu’ title!
All 8 finalists were also presented with a certificate and personalised “DOLMIO PROFESSIONAL® & UNCLE BEN’S PROFESSIONAL® Foodservice Student Catering Challenge” chef’s jacket at the awards presentation.
