New Delhi, March 18, 2023 – Indian Culinary Forum in association with Hospitality First and ITPO organized the 15th Culinary Art India Awards at Pragati Maidan to honor the winners of India’s biggest culinary challenge. Culinary Art India is known for its thrilling competitions among the chefs, and this year’s edition featured over 500 chefs showcasing their culinary excellence under 17 categories, marking the largest participation in the event’s history.

The winners of the four-day culinary challenge from 14th to 17th March were bestowed with awards in the presence of Chief Guest, Pradeep Singh Kharola, CMD, ITPO, among other top-notch names from the culinary fraternity. A total of 243 chefs won the Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals for their culinary excellence. Among them, 32 won the Gold medal, 62 won the Silver medal, and 149 won the Bronze medal.

The competitions at Culinary Art India 2023 were judged by a distinguished panel of WACS-certified jury members from India and abroad. Renowned Culinary Legend Chef, Uwe Micheel chaired this year’s competitions, with Chef Sireesh Saxena serving as the organizing secretary. Overall, Culinary Art India 2023 proved to be a thrilling and successful event, honoring deserving chefs, showcasing the rich diversity of Indian cuisine, and providing a platform for chefs to learn, collaborate, and push the boundaries of culinary excellence.

 “The event was a huge success, and the ICF is proud to have provided a platform for chefs to showcase their talent and compete in one of the most prestigious culinary competitions in India. Congratulations to all the winners and participants of Culinary Art India 2023. We believe that the skills and expertise shared during this event will contribute to the growth of the culinary industry and help raise the bar of culinary excellence globally.”

Chef Davinder Kumar, the President of the Indian Culinary Forum

“We are thrilled with the success of this event, and it’s been an incredible experience to see so many talented chefs from around the country come together and showcase their culinary skills. We hope that this event will inspire the next generation of chefs and provide them with the tools and knowledge they need to achieve their culinary dreams,” 

Chef Vivek Saggar, Indian Culinary Forum’s General Secretary.

Among the gold medalists was Rahul from Radisson Blu Plaza, Mahipalpur, who emerged as the winner in the 3-Tier Wedding Cake competition, while Aayusha Roy from Chitkara University won the gold medal in the Artistic Pastry Showpiece competition. In the Artistic Bakery Showpiece competition, Sarvan Kumar from Accor Pullman was the gold medalist. The Fruit & Vegetable Carving competition had two gold medalists, Shagul Hameed from Chennais Amirta IHM, Chennai and Punith J from Chennais Amirta IHM, Bangalore.

The Plated Appetisers competition had three gold medalists, namely Manish Saini from Hotel Le Meridien, Pankaj Singh from Lemon Tree Hotel Sandal Suites Noida, and Deepak Bisht from Lemon Tree Hotel Sandal Suites Noida. Antima from Accor Pullman won the gold medal in the Petit Four competition. The 3-Course Set Dinner Menu competition had three winners, with Shubham Bisht from Hotel Le Meridien, Deepak Singh from Lemon Tree Hotel Sandal Suites Noida, and Bhaskar Chandra Joshi from Lemon Tree Hotel Sandal Suites Noida being the gold medalists.

In addition to these, Arshi Naeem from The Surya Hotel won the gold medal in the Authentic Indian Regional Cuisine competition, while Neelkanth from Radisson Blu Plaza, Mahipalpur emerged as the winner of the Contemporary Sushi Platter competition. The Live Cooking Competition for a 45-minute Rice Dish had five winners, namely Sowdagar Zaeeha Khan from Indian School of Hospitality, Rishi Goyal from Vedatya Institute, Pawan Rawat from Pride Plaza Hotel, Sandeep Singh from India Habitat Centre, and Hasan Ali from Country Inn and Suites by Radisson Sahibabad (Gzb).

Romeo from JW Marriott Hotel, New Delhi won the gold medal in the Egg Benedict competition, and Sahejpreet Kaur from Institute of Bakery and Culinary Arts emerged as the winner of the Chocolate Mania competition. The Dress the Cake competition had two winners, namely Pranjal from Chitkara University and Maneesh Rawat from Country Inn and Suites by Radisson Sahibabad. The Mocktails Competition had eight gold medalists, namely Puneet Sharma and Sange Phunchu Bapu from Le Cordon Bleu School of Hospitality & Tourism (GD Goenka), Indrani Kalita and Nimra Firdous from Indian Hotel Academy, Anmol Gureja, M. Vishali, and Deepanshu Ashra from UEI Global, and Chandu A. and T.S. Shree Ram Yadav from Chennais Amirta IHM, Bangalore.

About Indian Culinary Forum: 

The Indian Culinary Forum is India’s association of Professional chefs of India. It was formed in New Delhi in 1987 as an exclusive non-profit-making organization, dedicated solely to the advancement of the culinary art of India. The Forum’s objective is to act as a link, a platform and an instrument for the enhancement and overall development of the national community of chefs. The World Association of Cooks Societies (WACS) is 110-nation fellowship comprising the world’s various professional chefs’ organization representing over 9 million professional chefs. The ICF has an international culinary focus in the staging of its various competitions, seminars, and events. The aims of the ICF, broadly, are:

·        To encourage and inspire junior chefs through training and competition

·        To enhance international, the culinary prestige to India

·        To encourage Indian nationals to consider a career within the hospitality industry

·        To promote Indian Cuisine globally

·        To help young chefs to hone culinary skills through training, workshops, and competition

—-