Top global chefs fill New Orleans as the Olympics of cuisine begins this week

The dessert covered an entire table with a super-sized bee on a hive and a grasshopper on a mushroom, like a cartoon come to life but all edible, intricately wrought entirely from sugar and chocolate. But it wasn’t just the precision and beauty of the dessert that elicited cheers and chants from the crowd.

This was an entry from Team Colombia, one of six teams of chefs representing their home countries in New Orleans at the Pastry World Cup. They were chasing glory on behalf of their homeland, and supporters turned out waving flags and urging them on as another of their creations went to the judging table.

The Pastry World Cup and the related Bocuse d’Or are considered the Olympics of the food world, representing the peak of culinary creativity and prowess.

The finals for each are held in Lyon, France, every other year, with the next coming up in January. Teams from around the globe compete, but to make it there they must first progress through continent-based qualifying rounds. For the first time, the U.S. is hosting this selection round for North American and South American teams, and the host city is New Orleans.

It's a gathering of international culinary talent and attention quite unlike anything else in the world. It has turned the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center into an arena of chef competition, with teams working against the clock to complete a series of dishes in different categories, and fans erupting into national ardor around them.

It has also drawn many from the New Orleans restaurant business. They were watching closely as the teams worked in their respective kitchens and pointing out the global culinary superstars in attendance, including Jerome Bocuse, son of competition founder and namesake Paul Bocuse, the father of modern French cuisine.

“Hearing this event was coming here made me very, very proud for our city,” said Tom Branighan, chef of the French Quarter restaurant MaMou. “I have massive respect for what these people do. It’s such a refined level. These are the racehorses of cuisine.”

What's ahead, what's at stake

The Pastry World Cup was held Tuesday (June 11), while Bocuse d’Or competition, with a focus on savory creations, continues Wednesday and Thursday (June 12-13).

Teams all earned their berths in this Americas selection round at earlier competitions. For the Pastry World Cup, that included Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Paraguay. The teams advancing to the finals were Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and Argentina.

But as the competition was underway, the mood for locals watching the proceedings was that New Orleans itself was already a winner by hosting this high-profile culinary happening.

“New Orleans is the land of food. We 100% should have this here,” said Dee Lavigne, founder of the local Deelightful Roux School of Cooking.

The city's cultural affiliation with cuisine was a driver for the campaign to land the international event.

“When we heard this was a possibility, we went after it hard,” said Alice Glenn, executive vice president of New Orleans & Co., the city’s tourism marketing agency. “We wanted to host these chefs from around the world and show them what New Orleans can do.”

Global flavor, New Orleans hospitality

While the convention center is the arena of competition, the event is playing out beyond its halls. International teams are being hosted by local restaurants and other kitchens, including the New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute, continuing their training right up to the last minute, and also in some cases holding private workshops for other chefs.

New Orleans has been rolling out the red carpet. The competition is intense, but there’s a friendly camaraderie among the contenders that showed during a reception held Sunday at the residence of the French consul in the Garden District, and again Monday when Arnaud’s Restaurant cleared its main dining room to host the visitors.

Clad in the same formal chef whites and tall toques they'd wear in competition, the international chefs peered into the gumbo pots and quizzed Arnaud’s staff about soufflé potatoes and shrimp Arnaud (the house remoulade), as the hors d’oevers and platters of Sazeracs and French 75 cocktails went around the room.

It’s all part of the networking and culinary community-building that is part of the events.

That continues at social functions being held at downtown venues through the week and even at private homes around the city. With so much talent in town, many doors are being opened.

Some are looking for a longer-term impact after the competitions too.

“This is about inspiring the next generation of chefs,” said David Leishman, a representative of the U.S. Department of Agriculture based in France, who helped bring the events to New Orleans. “I think this is just the beginning for what we can do, and New Orleans is a perfect place to showcase it.”

The Bocuse d’Or competition on Wednesday and Thursday will feature nine teams representing Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico, the U.S. and Venezuela. Five will advance to Lyon.

These teams will take on two tests, a theme dish and a theme platter, both with Louisiana themes this year. The plate will showcase seafood, including shrimp, oysters and lump crabmeat, while the platter will include a rack of wild boar, alligator sausage and grits.

Team USA competes Wednesday, and the teams advancing to the finals will be announced Thursday. The competition is open to the public, with tickets at $75 for all days. Events are also being live streamed at bocusedor.com/en/streaming.

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