Nordic countries sweep Bocuse d'Or at Sirha

Team Denmark — with lead chef Kenneth Toft-Hansen and commis Christian Wellendorf Kleinert — took gold at the 2019 Bocuse d’Or culinary competition at the Sirha expo in Lyon, France. Sweden and Norway won the silver and bronze prizes, respectively.

Denmark’s team coach, Rasmus Kofoed, was a past winner of bronze, silver and gold awards. This is only the second time Denmark has won the gold prize.

The final competition on Jan. 29 and 30 followed 60 national selection rounds and four “continent” competitions that winnowed down the 67 competing countries to the final 24.

1,300 fans filled the grandstands cheering enthusiastically for their country’s chefs.

Some fans, like those from the winning country Denmark, took the fandom to another level. A confetti cannon shot out Danish flags to the crowd.

32 judges scored the plates, platters and kitchen behavior during the competition. At the center is USA head judge Thomas Keller.

Each chef needed to make a platter and a dish. The dish was required to be the French traditional meal, chartreuse, with vegetables and fish. Above is the Denmark team’s chartreuse.

For the platter, the contestants had to make a roast veal for 14 people in five and a half hours with three mandatory garnishes and one sauce or gravy.

Here, the Denmark team’s platter shows the whimsy and creativity this competition encourages.

The U.S. team placed ninth, this year represented by head chef Matthew Kirkley, formerly of Coi in San Francisco, Fat Duck and Le Meurice, and Mimi Chen, formerly of the restaurant Daniel, as commis.

The Bocuse Institute shuts down for the Sirha chef conference in Lyon, France. They help with the competitions and hold pop-up restaurants on the show floor.