Ashbourne chef's silver medal

Chef David Fountain, from Brindley Park in Ashbourne, has scooped a silver medal in the Chef of the Year category at the Sodexo Salon Culinaire 2013, the annual culinary competition run by foodservices company Sodexo Ireland for its 1,800 staff based in 180 client locations across Ireland. Celebrity chef and reality television star Derry Clarke was one of the judges and the heat was on as hundreds of chef and non-chef contestants across Ireland vied to win a gold, silver or bronze medal in culinary excellence, in over 18 competition categories.

David and the other Chef of the Year contestants had to prepare, cook and present a three course meal against the clock.   David’s starter was a goats cheese ravioli with a tomato fondue, followed by Salmon ‘Mi Cuit’ with a confit savoy cabbage, horseradish moussaline and a beetroot glaze while his dessert was a warm chocolate tart with parsnip icecream and parsnip crisps.

David said: “I used to enter competitions a few years ago and so the Salon marked a welcome return for me to that arena. The quality of judging was very good and we got really detailed feedback on the dishes. The standard was very high and I knew that it would be but it wouldn’t be a challenge otherwise! I was delighted to win the silver medal against such strong competition on the day.”