In a
week, the World Food Championships descends upon Kissimmee, FL for the ultimate
food fight. I am following Keoni Simmons from San Diego, CA for this year’s
World Food Championships. He is a classically-trained chef and owner of the
Hungry Chef. He has even formulated an Original BBQ Sauce using local ingredients
with an essence of Hawaii. His family is originally from Hawaii and both of us grew
up on the same local food. I had to chance to meet this awesome chef and ask
him about the WFC. I am also including my perspective as a judge.
 |
| From left to right: Jeff Roberto (Sushi on a Roll) and Keoni Simmons (Hungry Chef San Diego) |
If
you could give just one piece of advice to someone competing at WFC for the
first time, what would it be?
KS: “I would tell them
to have fun! I know it’s a competition. If you’re not having fun then it is not
worth it.”
CM: “Make a mental plan of what needs to be done from prep to submission.
Practice at home with timing and plating. One of the competitors last year lost
track of time and ended up rushing to the turn in. She tripped and lost one of
her judges’ plates as well as her presentation plate. The missing plate ended
up being a zero and our table had to give her very low scores on the
presentation.”
What
is the most important thing to remember when competing?
KS: “There are
actually a couple things to remember: 1) Pay attention to the clock. If you do
not turn it in on time, you get zero points. 2) Stick to your game plan. Do not
change things around at the last minute.”
CM: “Focus is the most
important thing to remember. Do not pay attention to your competitors or what
they are cooking. Focus on your dish during preparation and make your
presentation count. After you turn in, then you can check out what everyone
else is doing.”
How
do you stay focused when there is $100,000 on the line?
KS: “I am not really
thinking about the $100,000. I am there to lay the smack down on the other
competitors. To me, if I win the money, it is just bacon sprinkles on top of my
doughnut and makes it that much better!”
What
is the most difficult aspect of the competition?
KS: “The waiting to
compete. You have a 100 different thoughts going through your head on how to
make your dish better. Ignore them and stick to your game plan.”
What
is the best way to deal with the heat of the competition?
KS: “With an Ice Cold
Beer!”
CM: “Having met Keoni,
I observed that he is an even-keeled chef. I can see him being calm and
collected with his second chance of competing at WFC. Now that he knows what is
expected, it will be just that much easier for him this year.”
Tell
me about your journey to WFC 2015. Do you know what you will be preparing this
year?
KS: “Last year, we had
a month to get ready for the competition. We were in first going into the final
10 of our category. This year, we have had a lot more time to come up with our
dish, hopefully that will help. Right now it’s down to the Island Soar Boy 2.0
and a sandwich using ribeye for the Sandwich Competition.”
For
more information:
Kissimmee,
FL
November
3-10, 2015
Keoni Simmons, Hungry Chef
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