The finalists in 2014 Unilever Food Solutions Chef of the Year are ready for the showdown cook-off on Thursday 11 September 2014 at the Unilever head office in Durban, following the regional competitions in Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town.
2013 Junior winner Kirstin Hellemann's dessert
Senior finalists
Senior finalists who will be competing for the cash prizes of R15,000 for first place, R10,000 for second place and R5,000 for third place are:
- Germaine Clarence Esau from Delaire Graff Estate
- Hanno Van Eeden from Sheraton Hotel Pretoria
- Jade Van Der Spuy from 1000 Hills Chefs School
- Mluleki Luthuli from Radisson Blu Sandton
- Sven Samuel Adams from Belmond Mount Nelson Hotel
- Xavier Francis from Oyster Box Hotel
Junior finalists
Junior finalists competing for the R10,000 first prize, R6,000 second prize and R4,000 third prize are:
- Amoré Botha from 12 Apostles Hotel & Spa
- Candice Jordan from Fusion
- Kirsten Howell from Saxon Hotel
- Michaela van der Merwe from 12 Apostles Hotel & Spa
- Samantha Holtman from 1000 Hills Chefs School
- Samantha Jones from Hilton Hotel Sandton
2013 Senior winner David Thomas' main course
Other categories
Finalists in the remaining three categories of the competition - Creative Canapés, Confectionary Showcase and Bring Your Best Team of Four - were selected based on their submitted entries and were not subject to a semi-final cook-off.
Creative Canapés finalists, with a first prize of R7,000, second prize of R2,000 and third prize of R1,000 are:
- (Goo) Ekkanut Imthawin from Hilton Durban
- Mpho Malaka from Raddison Blu Gautrain
- Samantha Lloyd from The Taj in Cape Town
- Sylvia Thobile Ntsindane from Quills Deli
- Thobekile Ntetha from Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani
- Yatish Bipulprasad from FEDICS
Confectionery Showcase finalists, with a first prize of R7,000, second prize of R2,000 and third prize of R1,000 are:
- Kevyn Bradley Buys from Capsicum Culinary Studio
- Larissa Chevonne Pillay from The Oyster Box
- Nathan Jacobs from The 12 Apostles
- Skhumbuzo Maphanga from Durban ICC
- Thabani Magubane from Quills Deli
- Wonda Grobbelaar from Chocolat te Gateaux
2013 Team of 4 winners' dessert
Bring Your Best Team of Four, with a first prize of R20,000, second prize of R12,000, and R8,000 third prize are:
- Compass
- Harvey's Restaurant
- Hilton Hotel Sandton
- Holiday Inn Sandton Rivonia
- Raddison Blu Gautrain
- Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani
- Western Province Caterers
"Entering its fourth decade, the competition is a way for the company to pay tribute to the talented chefs in the South African culinary industry. We take pride in ensuring that that our chefs know that we appreciate their hard work and dedication to the industry and are committed to inspiring, motivating and encouraging them to continue doing the great work that they do through such rewarding competitions," says Craig Elliott, executive chef of Unilever Food Solutions.
