Calling all chefs, baristas, sommeliers & waiters

Calling all chefs, baristas, sommeliers and wait staff

New Zealand Culinary Fare, the New Zealand hospitality industry’s annual exposition of culinary skill and expertise, is calling for entries from chefs, waiting staff, sommeliers and baristas from around the country.

Each year more than 1000 kitchen and restaurant service competitors gather at NZ Culinary Fare to compete over three days for national titles across 63 classes. The sheer size of the event makes it one of the largest in the Southern Hemisphere.

The annual event is held in association with HospitalityNZ – New Zealand’s largest annual gathering of figures from the hospitality industry; including restaurateurs, bar and nightclub owners, café operators and professional caterers.

Vicky Knight, Event and Sponsorship Manager for the NZ Culinary Fare, says competitors come from all over New Zealand, with skill levels ranging from professional chefs and baristas to independent café owners and even high school students.

Ms Knight says competing at NZ Culinary Fare is a good way of getting industry exposure as many of New Zealand’s leading restaurateurs, bar and café owners come to watch the competitions and scout for up and coming talent.

Last year the winner of the Barista of the Year section of NZ Culinary Fare, Carl Sara, received both national and international exposure after coming fourth at the 2005 World Barista Championship held in Seattle, USA.

This year NZ Culinary Fare is being sponsored by the Hospitality Standards Institute of New Zealand. Ms Knight says this reinforces just how seriously this prestigious event is taken both inside and outside the hospitality industry.

The event schedule, including the competition timetable and entry forms is available on the HospitalityNZ website www.hospitalitynz.co.nz, and from the Restaurant Association of New Zealand website www.restaurantnz.co.nz or by calling the Restaurant Association on 09 638 8403 for a copy.

As well as NZ Culinary Fare, HospitalityNZ also includes the Telecom Business Seminars, featuring some of the country’s leading hospitality business figures sharing their secrets to success, The Hospitality Show, featuring new and innovative products and flavours from New Zealand and overseas, and Wine New Zealand, the largest gathering of wine makers, importers and negotiants in the country.

Enquiries about attending or exhibiting at Hospitality NZ can be made by contacting Spencer Gale at dmg world media (NZ): either by phone 09 976 8364; email – spencergale@nz.dmgworldmedia.com; mobile - 021 399 223; or fax - 09 379 3358.

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About dmg world media

dmg world media owns and runs over 40 other major trade fairs and public exhibitions in Australia and New Zealand every year with more than half a million visitors annually. Nearly 8,000 companies exhibit at dmg world media shows and when it comes to linking like-minded people, no other company offers more opportunity and experience than dmg world media.

“Our exhibitions and shows create a professional and exciting environment for buyers to meet with sellers and experts to meet with advice seekers. With many years experience in managing exhibitions in Australasia, dmg world media creates cost-effective targeted opportunities to promote your business to both trade and consumer markets,” says general manager Elizabeth Falloon.

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