We
have something for everyone at A Taste of the Huon. Entertainment
and activities for the kids that will keep them busy all day and
allow parents a quiet moment to relax and take in the cultural
delights and taste sensations we have on offer. The main stage
will play host to an eclectic line up of musicians and the large
grounds will cater to our roving entertainers and buskers.
The
Great Waiter’s Race
If there’s any real
danger in the Great Waiter’s Race at A Taste of the Huon
it’s that someone in the audience will split their sides
laughing. This tough, but hilarious event challenges teams of
two from any restaurant or hotel in Tasmania to survive the gruelling
course. Competition is fierce. Be there early for best position;
they’re under starters orders
Young Tasmanian Chefs Competition
Could you stand the heat
of a professional kitchen? Could you cook under pressure in front
of an audience while a team of expert judges watch your every
move and take notes? That’s the challenge to be faced by
some of Tasmania’s hottest young chefs at A Taste of the
Huon, the annual food & wine harvest festival in the beautiful
Huon Valley.
Tasmanian food and wine has an international standing these days,
and the Huon Valley produces some of the finest gourmet specialties
on the island. World-class seafood and exotic mushrooms, hand-picked
saffron and superb cheeses, orchard fruits and medal-winning wines
are all within an hour’s drive.
‘We know this,’ says festival food coordinator Paul
Cullen, ‘and that’s why 20,000 people come to A Taste
of the Huon every year - to enjoy it. The question is, do we train
young chefs to a standard that can make the most of our great
produce? Can they do it under the toughest conditions, to top
restaurant standards?’ In 2009, the first Young Tasmanian
Chef’s Competition tested six apprentice chefs, hand picked
by their trainers, to demonstrate their skills in front of a panel
of industry judges and a public audience.
‘It was sensational,’ Cullen says. ‘We saw
great performances from the apprentices under nerve-wracking pressure.
It was fascinating to watch, and the 250-seat Huon Aquaculture
Food Theatre was packed all day. This year, there’s an even
larger field and the heats will be very exciting. They are competing
for big prizes, and we have contestants from some of the top training
colleges in the state.’
‘Contestants are presented with a mystery box of regional
produce. They have no idea what they will find inside and they
have just 60 minutes to prepare four plates of competition-grade
main course for the panel of judges, ‘Master Chef’-style.
There is no help and no mercy – it certainly sorts the amateurs
from the young pros, and it makes great theatre!’
