Chefs compete at the Sheraton in Po‘ipu

It’s on: Two chefs. A random selection of ingredients. Two unique culinary creations prepared in front of and served to hungry viewers with score cards. May the best dish win.

Last week the line-up was Sheraton Chefs Erwin Pascual and Dayne Arbilera, and the ingredients were sirloin steak and jalapenos, festive choices in celebration of Cinco de Mayo. Each week the venue is the Shells Restaurant at the Sheraton Kaua‘i Resort in Po‘ipu, with an open-air view of South Shore surf on one side of the room and the two chefs preparing their special dishes on the other side of the room.

In its eighth consecutive week, various chefs from the Sheraton have been competing against each other, creating a momentum for the Wednesday-night Culinary Challenge, a friendly contest allowing chefs to showcase their creativity, spontaneity and talent. And instead of the contest heating up in the kitchen, it’s on stage in the restaurant in front of guests.

“It has created such a buzz and a passion in the kitchen,” said Jacob Vogelgesang, director of food and beverage at the Sheraton Kaua‘i Resort, who admitted he came up with the idea of the challenge, inspired from the popular Food Network television show “Iron Chef America.”

Executive Chef Ben Takahashi is the director of the event each week, notifying the competing chefs and their teams of the random chosen ingredients a few days before the event. The teams are comprised of chefs from different areas and levels including bakers, pantry chefs, and cooks who all brainstorm together on what to come up with, Takahashi said.

“They will immediately go into their area and not talk to their competitor for a few days,” Vogelgesang said, as the chefs concoct their original creations.

Last week Pascual represented Team B, and together they came up with a pan-seared tequila and citrus marinated sirloin with a foie gras demi glaze and topped with a trail of roasted jalapeno and pineapple compote. It was accompanied by a saffron rice pilaf, roasted cherry tomatoes and asparagus spears.

Chef Arbilera, representing Team A, created a braised sirloin machaca, layered over a potato crab cake over a black bean smoked bacon purée. It was topped with a roasted jalapeno béarnaise sauce.

When you order the Chef Challenge meal at Shells, your server presents a slip of paper — an anonymous scorecard — along with the two-part meal. After eating you are asked to rate each dish by taste, presentation, use of base ingredients, and creativity, using a scale of 1 to 5. You then hand your scorecard back to your server. A Sheraton manager tallies up the scores at the end of the night and announces the winner around 10 p.m.

Vogelgesang said each challenge night they sell “upwards of 50” meals, and sometimes they “have prepped close to 100” over the course of the night, from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

So far only chefs from the Sheraton have been competing on Wednesdays, but an impressive list has been forming for upcoming challenges starting June 9. Chefs from Roy’s Po‘ipu Bar and Grill, Aston Makaiwa Beach Resort, The Beach House Restaurant, Kaua‘i Pasta, 22 North (formerly Gaylord’s), Mark’s Place and more have signed up to compete, including a private chef. When the said chefs begin competing, the price will rise slightly — up to $36 from $30 for the double meal.

“We will be helping them market their own hotel or restaurant,” Takahashi said of the participating guest chefs, and said he is looking forward to the upcoming contests. Takahashi also helps support farmers and ranchers on island with his “Sustainability Night” on Thursdays at Shells, where the Kaua‘i Farmers’ Market Special features a meal made completely (or at least 90 percent) from Kaua‘i ingredients.

The two Chef Challenge finalists will be announced at the annual Sunset Ho‘olaule‘a block party on July 17, and the final winner receives a party for 50 at the Sheraton, according to a press release.

The Chef Challenge is at Shells Restaurant each Wednesday from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. To make reservations or for more information call 742-4011.