Bocuse d’Or comes to Napa's CIA at Copia
By Virginie Boone
NAPA, Calif. — Every two years teams of chefs compete in Lyon, France, for the Bocuse d’Or, considered the most prestigious international culinary competition in the world. There, 24 countries gather to compose a platter and dish in five hours and 30 minutes to win gold, silver or bronze in what is considered a culinary Olympics.
On Sept. 3, three teams came to The Culinary Institute of America at Copia in Napa for the opportunity to represent Team USA at the next Bocuse d’Or in January 2025.
After five-plus hours of cooking and many hours of presentation and tasting by a renowned lineup of judges, Chef Stefani De Palma and her commis, Bradley Waddle were announced the winners. They will move on to compete at the 2024 Bocuse d’Or Americas Selection, an event that will ultimately determine the finalists for the competition in France.
“It is an honor to represent Team USA at the Bocuse d’Or,” De Palma said. “An incredible amount of planning and practice took place over the last two months in preparation for today’s competition and I am so proud of what commis Waddle and I accomplished.”
In Napa three teams competed for the chance to move on, each consisting of a head chef, a commis (also known as an assistant) and a coach. The commis must be 22 years old or younger by the date of the competition, while the head chef must be at least 23 years old and have a minimum of five years of experience working in a fine-dining restaurant.
In addition to winning the opportunity to represent the United States at the 2024 Americas Selection, the first-place team won a $5,000 cash prize.
The second-place team was Chef Vincenzo Loseto and commis Gavin Kennedy, coached by Chef Philip Tessier, followed by Chef Angus McIntosh and commis Alex Armer, coached by Chef Corey Siegel.
The teams had to create a “theme on a platter,” with Snake River Farms American Kurobuta Bone-In Pork Rack, including a starter and two accompaniments. Additionally, they had to create a “theme on a plate” with summer squash from The Chef’s Garden and zucchini or sweet corn from Cooks Company produce. The theme on a plate had to be portioned on 10 serving plates from Steelite.
The dishes were evaluated on the overall harmony of flavors in the dish, the presentation of the platter and plate, the techniques employed in the kitchen and the efficiency with which the team worked.
“All the competing chefs showed a hyper-focused drive this year and they displayed incredible skill,” said Chef Gavin Kaysen, Team USA President. “Chef De Palma and commis Waddle emerged with a unique approach, remarkable plating and a taste profile that impressed the judges.”
Judges included such fine-dining superstars as Timothy Hollingsworth, Michelle Karr-Ueoka and Roland Passot, while a larger leadership team was led by Chefs Daniel Boulud and Thomas Keller, co-founders of Ment’or, a non-profit foundation founded in 2008 to provide formal structure and support for American chefs competing in the Bocuse d’Or.
Team USA has only won gold at the competition once, in 2017, with Chef Mathew Peters, formerly of Keller’s Per Se in New York City. It won silver in 2015 with Chef Philip Tessier, the chef/partner at PRESS restaurant in St. Helena and one of the team coaches at Copia. For 2025, the U.S. is fielding its eighth team and hoping to add to its medal wins.
“We witnessed the extraordinary talent of American young chefs during this competition,” Keller noted. “We promised Chef Paul Bocuse to realize his dream of the United States placing on the podium at the Bocuse d’Or and continue that promise with Ment’or’s commitment to mentoring new generations.”
Virginie Boone has written about and reviewed the wines of Napa and Sonoma for more than a decade.
