WelTec hospitality students serve up a win

WelTec hospitality students serve up a win at Worldskills

Wellington Institute of Technology (WelTec) hosted the Worldskills regional competition on April 17, gathering together the best young trades people in the region. The WelTec team took out the top honours in cookery and restaurant services, winning eight out of the twelve medals on offer.

Zoe Lloyd was the stand out performer in the culinary competition placing first in her division. In her second year at WelTec, Zoe has completed a Certificate in Food Preparation and Culinary Arts and is now working towards her Certificate in Patisserie.

To prepare herself for the ‘magic box’ competition, Zoe practiced with a lot with different flavours and textures. On the day, she was provided with a range of surprise ingredients to produce an entree, main and dessert to wow the judges.

WorldSkills Regional Coordinator and Judge, Peter Jay was impressed with Zoe’s passion and dedication. “It takes a lot of courage, commitment and ambition for students to compete at this level. Zoe really wants to be at the top of her profession. She’s got a real drive and star quality - she really shone.”

Zoe will be back into competition mode next month at the Wellington Culinary Fare. As part of the Food Show, she will compete in the prestigious Ian MacLennan Memorial event. Then, in September she will head to Christchurch to take part in the National Culinary Fare.

Both Peter and Zoe agree it’s the mental toughness that makes the difference with competition cooking. “It doesn’t matter how good a chef you are, if you don’t have mental aptitude to keep calm under pressure then you’re not going to succeed” says Peter.

Zoe explains that WelTec students are actively encouraged to complete in a range of competitions to expose them to the industry and broaden their horizons. “The teaching staff have really encouraged me. They have all worked in the industry and have plenty of experience so I’m always looking to them for advice, we’re really lucky to be learning from the best.”

ENDS

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