The Escoffier Cup makes for excellent entertainment. With wine, entertainment and terrific food mixed in with a few forgotten lines ? it might have been a night of dinner theatre, but instead it was the first round of a competition designed to smoke out Bermuda?s chef of the year.

The first preliminary match of the prestigious Escoffier Cup 2004 began on Tuesday evening at Bermuda International Imports on Par-la-Ville Road with the first four out of 16 competitors.

There was a lot at ?steak? during the competition. The winner will attend the world?s most prominent cooking competition, the Bocuse D?Or in France.

The winner and runner-up will also get the opportunity to work alongside celebrity chefs in the next year?s Bermuda Culinary Arts Festival gala dinner.

The chefs in the first match, were Benjamin Jewett of Flanagan?s, Rick Bartram of Elbow Beach, Shaker Estephene of the Newport Room and Steve Marston of the Pickled Onion.

Dishes had to be made from scratch in 25 minutes. The chefs were not allowed to bring in any pre-chopped vegetables or half-made sauces, although they were allowed to pre-chop ginger, scallions and garlic.

They were also required to use an Elle & Vire dairy product somewhere in their dish. Elle & Vire, sold locally by Butterfield & Vallis, is sponsoring the winner?s trip to France.

Commentator for the event was Syntuitive Ltd. chief of operations, Stephan Juliusburger. Syntuitive is a local company that aims to increase the training and development of Bermudian chefs.

Mr. Juliusburger was formerly the executive chef at the Sonesta Beach Resort, and before coming to Bermuda, cooked for the band, the ?Grateful Dead? while they were on tour.

Audience members were provided with score sheets to help the judges decide on the winner, and copies of the recipes and ingredient lists used by the contestants.

The first chef up to the plate was Mr. Jewett. It was his first time in competition. He did some mock stretches before he started on his dish, Universal Pork Tenderloin with rosti, a Swiss-German potato dish.

?It is called ?universal? because I am using ingredients from America, France and Asia,? Mr. Jewett explained.

As the clock began to tick, he became a blur, darting from demonstration area, to stove to counter top, more nerves than efficiency.

?We want to see him sweat,? said Mr. Juliusburger. ?We want him to work hard. This is a true chef?s challenge. I talked Jewett into doing this.?

Mr. Jewett began by making a marinade with maple syrup and soy sauce to tenderise the pork and provide flavour.

In the end, Mr. Jewett finished with 20 seconds to spare. His creation was then tasted by judges: retired Bermuda college chef instructor, Leo Betschart; Bermudian celebrity chef, author and head of the Bermuda College Culinary Arts Department Fred Ming, and publisher and editor of the ?Bermudian Magazine?, Tina Stevenson.

Samples of the food for the audience had been prepared ahead of time.

The chefs were graded on sanitation and work habits, utilisation of ingredients and use of allotted time, creativity, craftsmanship, serving portion size, flavour and texture, ingredient compatibility and nutritional balance and presentation.

Mr. Marston was up next, preparing a Tandoori pork ravioli. His dish was unique in that he used the pork as the outer casing and stuffed it with ricotta.

?I got the idea when I ran out of pasta one day and all I had left was pork tenderloin,? said Mr. Marston.

Mr. Marston spent most of his time on preparation and had an ingredient list of more than 20 items. ?Because I like to put myself under a lot of extra pressure, I am going to spend a lot of time on preparation,? Mr. Marston joked. ?But this dish has a quick cook time.?

The audience held their breath as the clocked ticked on. Mr. Marston finished his pork ravioli with a salad with mint sauce, raisins and pine nuts, just in the nick of time, prompting Mr. Juliusburger to say, somewhat reverently: ?He was never in trouble, he was always there.?

Next up was Mr. Estephene, a clear audience favourite.

Mr. Estephene presented the judges with a dual of pork and, like Mr. Marston included a long list of ingredients including loquots, calvados (a kind of cognac), veal stock and yoghurt.

Unfortunately, the list proved to be too long as Mr. Estephene forgot to bring the yoghurt with him. He went bravely on, and fielded questions from the audience as he cooked. ?I guess you?ve been through this already?? he joked with the audience as he wrapped up a tenderloin of pork in some foil, making it look like a silver Christmas cracker. He waved the smell of the cooking food toward the audience. ?Can you smell it cooking??

By now, several audience members were nearing a state of inebriation due to the different wines provided with each food sample, thanks to Goslings. Wine expert Brian Drea provided information about the different wines. ?Everyone enjoying themselves so far? I know I?m not,? Mr. Estephene said. ?Do you have any questions??

?Yes, where?s the yoghurt?? shouted one spectator.

?I wish I knew,? was Mr. Estephene?s heartfelt answer.

Meanwhile, there was a scramble in the back as organisers tried to round up some yoghurt. A runner was sent down to the Pickled Onion, where competitor Mr. Marston works, and at the last possible moment, Mr. Estephene was presented with the missing item.

Mr. Estephene managed to make good use of it in a cucumber yoghurt sauce for the pork. He also made pork wrapped in prosciutto and a fennel salad.

Mr. Bartram started with a sizzle as Madeira wine hit the hot pan. His work was perhaps the most ambitious of all and included pork tenderloin, scallops, pancetta Italian-style bacon), black pudding, mashed potatoes, ratatouille and green beans.

To ?mash? his potatoes he pushed the boiled potatoes through a sieve. ?That way it doesn?t lose the starch in the potatoes,? Mr. Juliusburger told the audience. ?It makes a huge difference to the texture of the potatoes.?

He also added a heart-stopping amount of Elle & Vire cream and butter. Sweat beaded on Mr. Bartram?s forehead as the clock ticked on. The audience was at the edge of their seats wondering whether he would make it, and if he didn?t, would they still get to try his entry? ?The pancetta is now basically cooked,? he mumbled with one minute left to go.

?He?s really taking it down to the wire,? said Mr. Juliusburger.

Mr. Bartram finished with a flourish, and to much clapping.

When the judges and audience members? scores were tallied up, Mr. Bartram was the winner of the first preliminary round, and Mr. Marston placed second. ?They were two very creative chefs,? said Mr. Juliusburger. ?Mr. Marston?s use of pork on the outside of the ravioli was unusual. In the end, Mr. Bartram got the edge because of complexity. The first and second place winners received the same scores in the flavour category.?

Afterwards, Mr. Bartram said it was a fantastic contest.

?It was a great competition,? he said. ?Obviously I am delighted to have won. I was very tied for time, but I got there in the end.? Mr. Bartram has been in Bermuda for two years. He is originally from Sunderland, England.

@EDITRULE:

The competition is far from over, and tickets at $50, are available at Bermuda International Imports on Par-la-Ville Road in Hamilton. The other preliminary rounds are October 5th and 7th at 6p.m. The semifinal is in the same location on October 14th. The finals will be held on November 13 at the Bermuda Culinary Arts Festival at the Fairmont Southampton Princess from November 10-16. For more information about the Festival, a schedule of events and reservations please visit www.bermudaculinaryarts.com or call 295-2508.