Ten of Ottawa’s top chefs faced off in a culinary contest Monday night, part of a fundraising event benefiting Canadian athletes.
They were at the Shaw Centre (formerly the Ottawa Convention Centre) for Gold Medal Plates, an annual event that celebrates Canadian excellence in cuisine, wine, the arts and athletic achievement.
The event features dinners in cities across the country, where top chefs are inviting to create a dish and pair it with a Canadian wine. They compete against each other for a gold, silver or bronze medal.
“We knew Canadian chefs were incredible, we wanted to just really put a highlight on them,” said Karen Blair, Gold Medal Plates Co-Founder.
Hundreds attended Monday night’s event, sampling dishes from restaurants across the city, Canadian wine, and listening to live music from Jim Cuddy and Anne Lindsay.
The event also attracts Canadian Olympic athletes, including figure skaters Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir and retired hockey player Jennifer Botterill at this year’s Ottawa dinner.
Since 2004, Gold Medal Plates has raised $8.2 million dollars in support of Canadian Olympic athletes.
At the Ottawa event this year, the gold medal went to Chef Patrick Garland of Absinthe Café, the silver went to Chef Steve Wall of Supply and Demand, and the bronze medal went to Chef John Morris of Le Café at the National Arts Centre.
