Elbow Beach chef Vijayakumar Velayudhan was dubbed the ?cod father? in the first round of the Escoffier Cup cooking competition on Thursday at International Imports in Hamilton.

In the Foley Cod Fillets section of the competition, Mr. Velayudhan beat out Laurent Ajas from the Reefs, Dave Talling from the Barracuda Grill and Don Bombuwala from the new St. George?s restaurant Indulgence. This is the competition?s fourth year. There are three other rounds to come including Maple Leaf Duck, Certified Angus Beef Tri Tips and the Hormel Pork Tenderloin competition.

The winners of all four rounds will go head-to-head in a final cook off to find Bermuda?s best chef at the annual Culinary Arts Festival, renamed the 2006 Bermuda Gourmet Getaway.

Mr. Velayudhan won the first bout with the heavyweight recipe ?Black Olive Crusted Cod, Truffle Honey Glazed Parsnips, Roasted Grillotes and Girolles, Fennel Scented Cream?.

Veteran Bermudian chef, teacher and cookbook author Fred Ming refereed and co-judged the event along with Tredick Gorham and Anthony McMahon. He described Mr. Velayudhan?s entry as ?a long drawn out recipe?.

It was broken down into six different components with at least 26 different ingredients.

During the Escoffier Cup, chefs have 25 minutes to prepare a meal. Most of the grunt work such as chopping and dicing is done during the competition, although some more complicated cooking procedures such as making stock can be done ahead of time.

What distinguished Mr. Velayudhan?s presentation was the speed at which he moved around the kitchen at International Imports. No motion was wasted. He didn?t waste a lot of time chatting up the onlookers, he just went straight to work.

To make the olive crusted cod, Mr. Velayudhan combined breadcrumbs in a small bowl, chopped black olives and capers and spread it in a tray slowly to dry and then added chopped tarragon.

After frying the seasoned fish on both sides to make the skin crispy, he applied Dijon mustard to the skin, fried it a little longer and then spread the black olive crust over the fillets and roasted it for about four minutes. He finished to much clapping and cheering.

During the Escoffier Cup, the chef prepares a dish for the judges to try, but each audience member also gets a sample that was made ahead of time.

The chefs are scored on taste, presentation, hygiene, complexity and ingredient compatibility, among other things. A chef can earn a total of 40 points.

Although the winner is determined by the judges, they take into account audience scoring. Usually the audience and the judges are in agreement. However, it is probably good that the judges take the audience?s opinions with a grain of salt.

By the time Mr. Velayudhan went to bat, the packed room was well-fuelled by Goslings wine, and a particularly potent cocktail called ?The Bermudian?.

One top ranking KPMG executive with several empty martini glasses in front of him, loudly proclaimed that he was giving Mr. Velayudhan a 41 and three quarters even though the score is out of 40. Earlier, during Reefs chef Mr. Ajas? turn, the same heavily saut?ed executive had given him a 40 before he?d even finished making the dish.

Another audience member said: ?But how can you score him when you haven?t had a chance to taste it yet??

In reality though, Mr. Ajas lost significant points because he did not finish his dish within the time allotted.

In the past, some chefs have brought their own kitchen timers to help them keep track of how long each step is taking.

Some chefs practice making their dishes over and over again at home to make sure that everything is timed perfectly. The last competitor, Dave Talling from the Barracuda Grill had an entirely different approach. He moved slower than Mr. Velyahudan, but methodically. He also engaged more with the audience. At first he seemed a little thrown by the intense verbal repartee coming from the peanut gallery.

At one point he even said: ?I think I forgot what I was doing.?

But he quickly recovered and began to treat his dish Truffle Butter Poached Cod with Foie Gras Spinach Ravioli, Saut?ed Black Figs, Chanterelle Mushrooms like a magic trick.

?This is a red pepper,? he said holding it up to the audience as though he was going to levitate it, ?just an ordinary red pepper.?

He picked up another ingredient and showed it to the audience. ?This is dragon fruit.? When he finished cooking he cut slices of the dragon fruit for people to try.

The level of heckling rose even higher with the last competitor, Mr. Talling, but he fought back. ?Go get me a beer, I?m almost done,? he told the audience casually halfway through his dish.

While beating eggs with a dramatic rattle and flourish, his response to a challenge from the audience was: ?Anyone who thinks they can out-drink me is pretty silly.?

To make his Asian Style Cod and Wanton Snack, Mr. Talling diced his cod into small pieces, sliced and saut?ed Shitake mushrooms. Although Mr. Talling appeared to be moving more slowly that Mr. Velyahudan, he actually finished cooking with a little time to spare.

He used every second of the five minutes of allotted plating time, tidying and putting little flourishes. He obviously had an eye for detail.

When he finished, Mr. Ming said Mr. Talling?s creation is ?a dish with what the French call ?melange? ? a variety of things. Hopefully we have a good marriage here where everything matches and tastes good together?.

During the competition a fair number of chefs stood at the back of the room, watching their friends compete. They cheered on their co-workers and heckled chefs from rival restaurants by making ?afflac? quacking noises at crucial moments.

As always, the rivalry was friendly. Two years ago, one of the chefs forgot a key ingredient just before starting to cook.

Rival chefs raced out to a nearby restaurant and borrowed the ingredient, racing back just in the nick time. The chef was naturally docked points for not having the ingredient, but it was a nice moment in Escoffier Cup history.

The Escoffier Cup is rapidly become a symbol of prestige in the restaurant community.

Many restaurant owners turn up at the event to watch their chefs perform. Maurico Thomas of the Upper Crust pizza chain (formerly Four Star), said that he?d come because one of his Indulgence Restaurant chefs had telephoned to say that he was competing. ?I will definitely come next year,? he said. ?And I will be encouraging more of my chefs to compete.?

When the winner was announced Mr. Velayudhan beamed, put his hand to his chest and gave a little bow. Later he was seen outside getting heartily smacked on the back by his fellow chefs.

The Maple Leaf round will be held on September 28 at International Imports at 6 p.m. Certified Angus Beef Tri Tips will follow on October 5, and Hormel Pork Tenderloin on October 12.

The final will be held on October 29 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Viking Village, a specially constructed kitchen at the Bermuda National Sports Centre will host several cooking events for the 2006 Gourmet Getaway from October 27 to 30. For more information telephone 295-4558 or go to www.bermudagourmetgetaway.com.