Taking place at the Abu Dhabi National Food Exhibition (ADIFE), the third edition of the World Gourmet Show was a crowd favorite over the three days at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, where Michelin Star chefs from around the world displayed their cooking expertise while preparing signature dishes.
Held under the patronage of Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of Presidential Court, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA), the International Centre for Culinary Arts (ICCA), a leading TVET school in culinary arts in Abu Dhabi, which provides award-winning learning experience to aspiring chefs, artisans, and entrepreneurs from across the UAE and abroad held the ICCA Competition, featuring leading upcoming chefs in the UAE competing to show their skills to a panel of esteemed judges in the culinary world.
The ICCA cooking Competition provided a special opportunity and unique platform for young and upcoming chefs to show their skills. With the students divided into three teams, each team was given five minutes to select their high-quality ingredients and one mystery ingredient, and 60 minutes to prepare a dish. As ADIFE focused on the importance of sustainability and reducing food waste in the culinary and cooking industry, the chefs had to use every ingredient they selected.
The winning team from the ICCA Competition was Team Two, which consisted of Maitha Ahmed Mohamed Abdulla Alshamsi, a local Emirati and Joemar Idios. Commenting on ICCA Competition, and participation at ADIFE, Francisco Araya, Director of ICCA Abu Dhabi said: “Participating at ADIFE has been a great experience for the ICCA and our aspiring young chiefs. Being a local brand, it has been a great opportunity to engage with international chefs at the exhibition, learn techniques from leading Michelin star chefs and expose the young talent, who will be the future of the industry.”
Under the theme of ‘Celebrating Global Flavors Fest’, this extraordinary event merged the culinary brilliance of Abu Dhabi with the expertise of Michelin-starred chefs from Europe, India, Armenia, and global gastronomic innovators. Each day at ADIFE followed culinary themes preparing traditional dishes from numerous featuring countries at ADIFE.
Day One at the World Gourmet Show highlighted Greek and Moroccan dishes prepared by Chef Theo Taverna, Chef Maher and a standout masterclass session from Michelin Chef Alessio Pirozzi. Day Two focused on Indian and Armenia dishes, with Masterclass sessions given by leading chefs, including Chef Spino, as well as Chef Luigi and Nick Alvis, as well as other masterclass sessions featuring leading Chefs from across the world.
