Kitchens were buzzing with activity as student teams competed against each other for
scholarship dollars at both campuses of the Culinary Institute of Virginia, ECPI University’s College of Culinary Arts, on April 28.
The Norfolk and Richmond locations were participating in a “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” culinary competition, with four student teams participating in Richmond and eight teams in Norfolk. This was CIV Richmond’s first culinary competition since opening in 2022.
The challenge for the students was to put a unique and upscale twist on traditional stadium finger foods. Each team had specific guidelines for their recipes, such as producing ten portions and keeping the cost per portion below $2.25.
In Richmond, the teams showcased their skills and creativity, presenting dishes such as funnel cake churros, nacho pretzels, cheeseburger croquettes, and Nashville chicken sliders.
In Norfolk, student imagination and ingenuity continued, with chili cheese dog eggrolls, a taco on a stick with Malay flavors, chicken karaage wrap, a potato bat, and Mexican street corn.
Both competitions brought together the culinary talents of CIV’s chefs-in-training, who showcased their skills, creativity, and ability to think outside the box. The students presented their dishes to the judges, who had the difficult yet delicious duty of evaluating them based on flavor, texture, presentation, and suitability for a baseball game.
The simultaneous nature of these competitions added to the excitement and energy in the kitchens of both institutions, creating a dynamic atmosphere for the participants and judges alike.
CIV was delighted to host a talented grouping of VIP judges for each location. The Norfolk judges included The Virginian-Pilot’s Larry Rubama and Rekaya Gibson, and Norfolk Tides General Manager Joe Gregory. In Richmond, Jeff Katz, afternoon drive radio host at WRVA, Henrico Citizen’s Patty Kruszewski, and Richmond Times-Dispatch’s Justin Lo all lent their culinary expertise.
The judges appreciated the students’ cooking skills and fresh perspectives. Observers watched as the judges had a challenging time deciding the winners due to the impressive flavors and creativity displayed by the students. They expressed their excitement about the opportunity to discover new ideas and enhance the culinary offerings at baseball games.
Ultimately, there can only be one winning team at each campus. CIV Norfolk winners were Tiona Parker and Tory Deleon for their Mexican street corn, which used mayonnaise, cotija cheese, paprika, cilantro, and a chipotle crema. “We were both kind of nervous yet confident that our dish would place,” said Deleon. “We had a boost of confidence when we heard one of the judges humming while they tasted our dish.”
CIV Norfolk Campus Director Kim Hicks said it was a great day all around. “We truly enjoyed holding the competition and having the judges on campus. It meant so much to our students to have this experience and exposure,” said Hicks.
The Richmond winners were Lyhanna McDowell and James Hope, with funnel cake churros – they were crispy on the outside, soft in the center, and included chocolate and strawberry dipping sauces. Each student team member received $1,000 in scholarship funds.
“It was a great first competition, and it went really well,” said Chef Delargy, Richmond CIV Program Director. “It’s the first of many more!”