The Island's top chefs have been left in a stew after a prestigious culinary competition they had hoped to enter was cancelled.

The Bermuda National Culinary Team will not be departing this Friday for the Taste of the Caribbean Competition in Puerto Rico.

"They are terribly disappointed,'' said Bermuda National Culinary Team junior coach Joe Gibbons. "This was to go on their resumes and they spent so long practising for this. They all gave up quite a lot to be on the team.'' Last week, Hurricane Georges wreaked havoc on the Caribbean with winds gusting up to 120 mile per hour and torrential rains. Haiti alone received 20 inches of rain last week thanks to Georges.

The category three hurricane cause so much damage that several Islands could not rally their teams together for the annual event. More than 20 teams were scheduled to take part in the competition.

And the event site itself, El Conquistador Resort and Country Club in Las Croabas, Puerto Rico, sustained damage from Hurricane Georges.

Last week, local officials revealed that there was some doubt whether the team would be able to travel to Puerto Rico for the Taste of the Caribbean Competition.

At the time it was thought that the roads in Puerto Rico might not be cleared in time for competitors to travel to the resort.

There have been high hopes that the local team would return triumphant again after making an impressive showing last year.

Bermuda Culinary Team chairman Graham Redford said the team was aiming to win gold medals in both the junior and senior teams.

"It will be difficult,'' he had admitted. "Last year's results are a tough act to follow.'' Last year, during their first appearance at the prestigious competition, the Bermudian junior team won a gold medal achieving the highest overall scores ever.

And the chef's team came away as silver medallists and finishing fifth overall in a field of 20, while pastry chef Kayte Gregory was singled out the chef -- out of a field of 150 participants -- that best exemplified the spirit of the competition.

Junior team member O'Shea Tucker was selected as the Caribbean representative to the Chaines de Rotisseurs world wide and bartender Irving Raynor was a finalist in the Battle of the Bartender competition.

The junior team was managed by Fred Ming while Jose Roy-Froncioni lead the senior chefs.

This year, Mr. Ming was going to become the first Bermudian judge at the internationally renowned event.

There has been talk that the competition might be postponed, however Mr.

Gibbons said he had little faith that the event would be held at a later date.

"I think that it will be cancelled for this year,'' he said. "They will have to wait until next year's event to defend their title.'' The National Culinary Team consists of five senior chefs -- Chris Malpas, Oliver Ramos, Marcus Wesch, Matthew Lines and alternative David Robinson -- and five junior chefs -- O'Shea Tucker, Marissa Lynne Simmons, Sharon Swan, Sherman Trott, and alternative Berson Mills. Bartender Delvine Caines rounded out the team.

The 11-member team were scheduled to depart Bermuda on Friday for the five-day Taste of the Caribbean competition, which is organised by the Caribbean Culinary Federation.

The Taste of the Caribbean Competition, now in its sixth year, has drawn international attention from the industry and the consumer food and wine press. The event is also sanctioned and judged by the American Culinary Federation.