The Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) said in a statement on Saturday that it supported the industry event Young Chef Young Waiter Macao Competition semi-final, where young local catering professionals competed with each other at the Macau Institute for Tourism Studies (IFTM).
The event, which also took place on Saturday, was organised by the Macau Culinary Association in conjunction with MGTO, IFTM and Wynn Macau.
According to the statement, 16 young local chefs and catering servers aged under 26 with a minimum of three years of hospitality experience reached the semi-final, which enabled young catering personnel to compete for a chance participate in the World Young Chef Young Waiter final in Monaco in November.
The statement noted that eight of the semi-finalists, which comprise four chefs and four catering servers, chosen by professional judges will compete in the Macau finals next month at Wynn Palace. The statement added that after the final, one chef and one catering server will be selected to compete with their international counterparts.
A panel of five judges led by Worldchefs Certified International Judge (certified by the World Association of Chefs Societies) Perry Yuen, the statement said, assessed semi-finalists based on culinary arts criteria including appropriate application of professional skills and good use of key ingredients.
Meanwhile, the statement noted that another judging panel of five was led by IFTM Food and Beverage Programmes Coordinator Edwyn Tam to assess the catering servicers’ performance in table setting and cutlery layout, among others.
MGTO said in the statement that it believes that participation in the competition inspires the local catering sector’s new generation to “strive for professional enhancement” and gain valuable experience.
The statement added that MGTO supports the industry event to “encourage young catering personnel’s reach for a higher level of expertise and international competitiveness”, which can add to Macau’s quality of tourism experiences and its “sustainable development as a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy”.
This handout photo taken and provided on Saturday shows participants in the Young Chef Young Waiter Macao semi-final.
