Great grub

The galley of HMAS Kuttabul recently won an award as the most outstanding kitchen within the Sydney Central Region.

The inaugural Sydney Central Catering and Hospitality Excellence Award, held at Randwick Army Barracks, was designed to promote healthy competition between messes and improve service standards and morale.

The competition was the result of customer surveys and informal feedback, indicating many customers at base messes believed the current contractors do not provide the same level of expertise and service as the previous military catering and hospitality staff.

Teams from HMA Ships Kuttabul, Penguin, Waterhen, Watson and Randwick and Victoria Army Barracks competed in the two-day competition.

In the individual event, bronze medals were awarded to POCK Peter Berry (Kuttabul), POCK Wayne Clarke (Watson) and LSCK Andrea Ruffy (MHQ).

Victoria and Randwick Army Barracks SSDS Chefs Sandy Price, Matthew Tuck, Paul Owens and John Tielburg won the team event.

Kuttabul’s winning galley team consisted of POCK Berry, LSCK Jeff Aikman, LSCK Ruffy and ABCK Allen Whitehouse.

The judging was chaired by Bruno Zahnd from the Australian Culinary Foundation, and consisted of pre-competition assessments of each mess kitchen, as well as individual and team events held over the course of the competition.

The individual event required the preparation of a buffet platter for eight, as well as salad and bread. The team event
required the preparation of a three-course meal for 52, with total costs not exceeding $12 per head.

The judging criteria for the competition included cleanliness, hygiene, correct and professional food preparation and presentation, and of course, taste.

It is hoped the award scheme will be commercially accredited and developed throughout the Sydney Central area, with the prospect of eventually being a national award scheme. The next Sydney Central competition is due to begin in March 2003.

• By Rachel Hickling

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