Singapore
singapore Singapore 23 rd March 2015 Galleria Ballroom, Grand Copthorne Waterfront, 392 Havelock Road, Singapore 169663
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he quest for the ultimate 21st century high tea in Singapore drew to an exciting close at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel on the 23rd March. It was a showcase of culinary flair and creativity as well as a celebration of the humble herb as 11 renowned F&B and hospitality establishments battled for top honours, and the opportunity to represent Singapore on the global stage at the Dilmah Real High Tea Challenge held in Sri Lanka this July. Ultimately, the judging panel led by Director of Dilmah Tea and son of the brand’s founder, Dilhan C. Fernando, Black Hat Chef Bernd Uber and InterContinental Singapore Executive Chef Eric Neo crowned Martin Wong, Head Chef and Lee Zhang An, Bartender of Tess Bar & Kitchen National Winners of the Dilmah Real High Tea Challenge Singapore 2015. The duo representing the 8-month-old establishment, an underdog among the impressive list of top-notch hotels and restaurants, proved themselves a force to be reckoned with as their exceptional presentation, eclectic menu of tea and food pairings blew the judges away and edged them from the rest. 10 other teams, apart from the winners, were specially commended by the judges and awarded the Silver and Bronze medals. This includes Shatec Institutes and Resorts World Sentosa respectively. Focusing on the versatility of tea as both a traditional beverage and a contemporary culinary ingredient, the teams were required to create bespoke tea-inspired menus. The entries were judged on tea preparation and brewing techniques, tea mixology, the correct pairing of tea with food and how well tea was used as the main ingredient in tea inspired cuisine as well as the quality and creativity of overall presentation and the contestants’ culinary expertise and knowledge. The teams were tasked to brew a minimum of four varieties of tea – a traditional black tea, a hot tea mocktail, a chilled tea cocktail, and a chilled non-alcoholic tea mocktail – and serve high tea food items alongside their preference of tea.
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