Chef John Bobby of Noble's Grille declared Fire in the Triad Champion

Chef John Bobby of Noble's Grille in Winston-Salem competed against Chef Timothy Bocholis of Bistro B in Kernersville. Pork butt and bacon were the secret ingredients and Chef John Bobby finished with a sweet victory. Check out Nik Snacks blog for a recap of the evening.

Chef John Bobby of Noble’s Grille Wins Fire In the Triad Competition Dining Series™

Chef John Bobby of Noble’s Grille Wins Fire In the Triad Competition Dining Series™

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Greensboro, NC (June 27, 2013) Last night, it was all about dessert. This might come as a surprise considering what the chefs had to incorporate into each dish. The North Carolina chef competition, Got To Be NC Competition Dining Series, wrapped up Fire In the Triad. On Wednesday evening, bragging rights went to Chef John Bobby and his team from Noble’s Grille in Winston-Salem, N.C. He won in a competitive battle against Chef Timothy Bocholis of The Bistro B & Wine Bar in Kernersville, N.C.

Sixteen chefs from the Triad including Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Kernersville, Jamestown and Burlington competed in the competition that began May 14 and concluded last night.

In the dining room at Greensboro’s Empire Room, guests waited to hear the final numbers, eyes riveted on the event host and founder, Jimmy Crippen. Crippen briefly quizzed each chef and his team members about how the day had unfolded. After recognizing the outstanding team at the Empire Room, Crippen rattled off the scores for all six courses. Chef John Bobby and teammates Lucia Bobby and Sara Brown took home the trophy, a $2000 check, a handmade chef knife by Ironman Forge in Charlotte, and the coveted red chef’s jacket only a Competition Dining finals winner can receive.

The $2000 check was presented by Mac Sullivan, chief executive officer of Pate Dawson-Southern Foods, lead sponsor of the event, and Jimmy Crippen, host and founder of Competition Dining.

Fire in the Triad challenged the chefs to use two featured ingredients from Cheshire Pork by Heritage Farms in Seven Springs, N.C. The chefs were required to use bacon and pork butt in each of their three courses for 140 diners. The chefs are not told what the featured ingredients will be until noon on the day they compete.

Both chefs rose to the occasion. Chef John Bobby’s first course was Beer Braised Pork Belly, Oyster Mushrooms, Pork Butt & Bacon Sausage, Fingerling Potatoes, Bacon Brodo and Blackberry Mustarda. He followed with a Pork Sugo, Spinach Tajarin, Garlic Chips, Grilled Fennel, Shaved Calvander Cheese and Fried Bacon Lardons. The dessert course, the brain child of his wife, Lucia, was the runaway hit of the evening: a Dark Chocolate Mousse Cake, Chocolate Covered Bacon Pieces and Pork Butt Peanut Brittle.

Chef Timothy Bocholis’ highest scoring dish of the night was Latin American Smoked Pork Guiso (Stew) with Peppers, Onions and Tomatoes, Black Bean Bacon Salsa with Orange, Sweet Potato Matchsticks and Poblano Crème Fraiche.

Culinary and professional judges for the evening included Todd Dulaney from OUR STATE magazine; Jim Early from the NC BBQ Society; Ted McCall, a culinary instructor at Johnson and Wales University; and Ryan Payne, the 2012 Final Fire champion and executive chef of Weathervane at Southern Season in Chapel Hill, N.C. Their votes were weighted at 30 percent. The dining public’s votes were weighted at 70 percent. Official event blogger Nikki Miller-Ka joined the judges as a non-voting guest. Her summary of the event will post Thursday at http://niksnacks.blogspot.com.

Chef John Bobby will now compete in November at Final Fire: Battle of the Champions against the Got To Be NC Competition Dining Champions from Asheville, Wilmington, Charlotte and the Triangle.

ABOUT GOT TO BE NC COMPETITION DINING SERIES™

The Got To Be NC North Carolina Competition Dining Series, in its second year, is part of a larger movement. Because we are all chefs, farmers, or diners, our mission is to connect and celebrate this community through a dynamic, entertaining experience. Each statewide competition features 16 chefs and 15 single-elimination dinner battles judged by the public. Fire in the Triad is part of the Got To Be NC Competition Dining Series.

Statewide sponsors for the event include the North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Pate Dawson-Southern Foods, OUR STATE magazine, Certified Angus Beef, Pepsi Bottling Ventures and Swisher Hygiene.

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For more information, contact Kristen Baughman at (919) 750-5712 mobile or kbaughman@pdco.com (PR Specialist)

or

Susan Dosier at (704) 993-7871 mobile or susan@DKcommunicationsgroup.com (PR Consultant)

www.competitiondining.com offers event dates, ticket sales, and bios on participating chefs

www.facebook.com/competitiondining offers daily news and updates, photos of chef dishes and more

www.youtube.com/user/CompDiningNC shares videos of the winner after each competition, video bios on each chef and more

www.Twitter.com/compdiningnc uses the hashtag #compdiningnc to enjoy the fun, ongoing conversation

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