THE PERFECT BITE COMPETITION
OVERVIEW & CHEF INFO
Perfect Bite Competition at the TURN Festival
September 24, 2023 at 6 PM.
NUMBER OF GUESTS: 175
CONTACT INFO FOR QUESTIONS: Tommy Reddicks: 720-341-8592, treddicks@paramountindy.org
CHEF PAY:
All chefs will receive $250 for participating (paid the night of the competition). This amount is designed to help cover food costs and/or leave a little extra for participation. But chefs can choose to elevate their perfect bite and spend more (keeping less). It’s a chef’s choice. In this competition, there is no limit on spending.
RULES:
There “is” a size limit for The Perfect Bite. The size limit of the "edible portion" of the bite cannot exceed 2" x 2" X 2" (WxLxH). Items used to assist in the delivery of the bite (plate, fork, spoon, etc.) may exceed the 2" requirements. Additionally, the following rules apply:
- Sauces, dips, rubs, or spices may exceed the 2" boundaries as long as the actual bite (after dipping, seasoning, or saucing) stays within the 2" rule.
- The perfect bite cannot be multiple bites but “can” contain multiple deconstructed components that are intended to be reconstructed for a single composed bite that fits within the 2" rules.
- Event judges have complete and final say over all size limit concerns.
- Chefs not abiding by the rules will lose their eligibility for the finals.
- Participating Chefs must submit the following information prior to September 1 to be eligible for the finals
- a recent photo
- their current restaurant or status
- the title of their bite
- their recipe (basic overview and ingredients)
THE COMPETITION:
Beginning at 6 PM and lasting for one hour, guests will have a single ticket for voting for their favorite bite. WIth 175 in attendance, Chefs should be prepared to serve a between 150 and 200 bites.
At the end of the first hour, all tickets will be counted, and three finalists are chosen:
The two chefs with the most tickets will make the finals and be awarded a World Food Championship Golden Ticket. A third chef will be awarded a spot in the finals (and Golden Ticket) by a participating pair of culinary experts (who will also be judging the finals). The Golden Tickets come with a $500 check from Kelly’s Fund for helping with the flight to the WFC. In the event of a tie for the top two places, the finals judges will determine a winner.
THE FINALS:
The 3 finals chefs will compete head-to-head in a “perfect plate” challenge. Each chef will compete for one of the three sponsors (Last year it was Purdue Polytechnic High School, Paramount Schools of Excellence, and Purdue Extension Marion County). The top four ranked chefs not making finals will assist the pair of culinary experts in judging the finals. The winning chef receives $1,000. 2nd place receives $750, and 3rd place receives $500.
THE PANTRY:
In addition to their own winnings, the final three chefs will compete to win more money for their sponsors. The winning chef will win a larger cut of the evening's proceeds for their sponsor. During the finals, chefs will have access to a pantry that will include free ingredients, as well as more desirable ingredients that guests can buy for any chef. In this way, guests loyal to the sponsor the chef is cooking for will be incentivized to buy their chef higher-tier ingredients for the final cook. This also helps to raise more money. The final cook will last 45 minutes.
ARRIVAL:
Chefs can arrive any time after 2 PM to prep. Event staff will meet arriving chefs and show them to their space.
PARKING: Chefs can park behind the tents on the Paramount grounds (3020 Nowland Avenue, 46201), so loading and unloading are easy.
EQUIPMENT: Every chef will have a 6’ table with power (standard 120) for one hot plate/induction burner (no open flames allowed). Chefs must bring their own induction burners/pots/pans/knives, ladles, etc. If we need to source heat for you, we’ll try our best but cannot guarantee we’ll find what you need.
PLATES AND SILVERWARE: Recyclable plates and silverware will be available for chefs to serve all guests.
PREP AND GREENROOM: All chefs will have access to a prep tent with 54’ of table space and plenty of room for coolers. The prep tent will have power, but in limited supply. This chef tent also serves as the break room/green room for chefs and their staff and will have plenty of snacks and beverages. It is a 15-second walk from the main tent. It is also the home for 30 VIP guests who will be seated in the center with a fantastic supply of bourbon (which is available to all chefs).
EVENT LAYOUT: The event layout from 2022 is copied below. This is an outdoor event held in tents.
