On Monday February 13, 2017, twenty teams from high schools in the Denver area participated in the Auguste Escoffier School of the Culinary Arts’ Young Escoffier Competition. The event was the second of its kind for the school and the first time Curtis Duffy, the chef and owner of the 3 Michelin-starred restaurant Grace in Chicago, was a featured judge. Of the 20 competing teams, the three winners were: Rocky Mountain High School (3rd place), Ponderosa High School (2nd place) and Elizabeth High School (1st place).
The cooking competition consisted of students preparing dishes with a basket of mystery ingredients like radishes, eggs, lettuce, pomegranate and carrots. Competitors were given thirty minutes to prepare their mise-en-place and 60 minutes to complete their plated dish. The winning teams won scholarship money toward tuition at the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts and Mercer knife sets.
