West Chester is home to the best sous chef in the country. Really.
The Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Jeune Commis Rôtisseurs Competition first named Jason Curtis, sous chef at Gilmore’s Restaurant in West Chester, the Mid-Atlantic champion. Ranked among the top 10 sous chefs in the country, Curtis then took the U.S. title in Seattle, and will head to Finland in September to compete internationally. The Chaîne des Rôtisseurs is an international gastronomic society founded by France’s King Louis IX in 1248.
We interviewed him after he won the regional competition and caught up with him to see how his recent competition went and what his strategy is to compete to be the best in the world.
WC Dish: Tell us about the experience for the national competition.
Jason: The competition was in Seattle and 10 regions were represented. All the competitors spent about 3 days all together going to food-related places like Pike Place Market, specialty shops and had a lot of dinners out. It was such a nice experience.
WC Dish: Okay, so you were all friends for a few days but how did things heat up with the competition?
Jason: Well, we drew numbers to determine the order in which we would cook; I drew number 7. We arrived at 5:30 a.m. and everyone started cooking about every 15 minutes, so I started cooking at 8:30 a.m. The last 3 spots didn’t have to start until 9:30 or 10, so they got to sleep in and (he laughs) I was a little bitter about that.
WC Dish: Was it a another mystery basket competition?
Jason: Yes, but this time it was all proteins. Everyone got Pacific oysters, a whole chicken, salmon and bass. When our time started they took us into a room and showed us the mystery basket and we had half an hour to write the menu.
WC Dish: How did you feel with what was in your basket?
When I saw the basket I got nervous because I thought they expected us to put something into a dessert, so I asked them if I had to make a dessert. They told me that we could make whatever dessert we wanted as long as all of the ingredients were included in the other dishes, so I was very happy that I didn’t have to make oyster dessert (This is where we digressed to discuss making a salmon-skin dessert like a candied bacon and tried to decide if it’d actually be good or not.).
WC Dish: You had a three-course menu to make. What was on the menu?
First course – Pernod-scented chicken mousse with tempura-fried Pacific oysters and a celery-leaf salad dressed w/citrus juices (orange, lemon and lime) and an orange dust.
Second course – A braid of salmon and bass served with Swiss potato, cucumber pappardelle and a lemon-beurre fondue.
Dessert – Vanilla-basil custard with a vanilla-mango sauce and strawberry-lime salad.
WC Dish: How much time did you have?
Jason: We had half an hour to plan the menu, 3 hours to prepare and half an hour to plate it.
Jason The local chapter of Chaîne des Rôtisseurs and one of the judges was the previous year’s winner…so I get to look forward to doing that next year.
WC Dish: So the next stop is Finland. How are you preparing for the next round of competition?
Jason: From what I understand it’ll be the same thing but I heard through the grapevine that I may have an extra 30 minutes. So, that will be nice. I expect the same type of competition with a mystery basket and I will be competing with representatives of 20-25 other countries.
WC Dish: Anyone you’re keeping your eye on as your toughest competition?
Jason: Not really. I’m just going to go and do what I do and hope for the best. There is never enough practice, but we have been so busy and I hope to find time to to practice before we go.
WC Dish: Why do you think you are taking the wins so far?
Jason: I think I do things that are different. I do protein mousses and I never see that anywhere. The braid is something I learned at Le Bec Fin. I don’t stick with classic stuff and I like to mix it up. I think that pairing chicken with oysters is different and the judges like that. Also, the custard I made was something I prepared in a pan and cut it out and put it on a plate and it was free standing. Normally you wouldn’t see that, so I think the judges obviously liked that. I can’t say how many judges complimented me on the braid because that’s something they had never seen before.
I’m comfortable with my cooking and I’ve practiced and I have confidence. I’m not going to go in to do something I’ve never done before because you don’t have time to fix it and you can’t stray from the menu; it’s not like in Iron Chef in that you can change it if it doesn’t work out.
At press time, Jason will have already had his encore dinner that showcases the menus that he won with in his regional and national competitions. No American has ever won the international competition, so he hopes to change that. Let’s hope he does so we can enjoy another encore meal to taste his winning menu.
About Gilmore’s Restaurant
Gilmore’s is an award-winning BYOB serving exceptional French cuisine prepared with a contemporary American flair. Owned by Chef Peter Gilmore and his wife, Susan, since August 2001, Gilmore’s is located in the borough of West Chester at 133 East Gay Street, West Chester, PA 19380. Gilmore’s was most recently included in Zagats ‘World’s Top Restaurants 2008-2010’ and rated ‘extraordinary to perfection’ in both food and service. Dinner is served Tuesday through Thursday with seatings every half-hour from 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM and Friday and Saturday at 6:00 PM and 8:30 PM. Reservations may be made at www.gilmoresrestaurant.com or by calling 610-431-2800.
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