Festival Loiseau: taste wins

The relaxed and tasty journey of the ninth edition of the Festival culinaire Bernard Loiseau, here at the Constance Belle Mare Plage resort, on the island of Mauritius (one island only, Mauritius is not an archipelago as the Maldives or Seychelles), gives way to the true competition. The date is set for today, Thursday April 3rd, with the results to be announced on Saturday night. On Sunday everything will finish and the dates of the tenth anniversary are already known: March 21st-28th 2015. They were announced on Tuesday night by the CEO of the Constance group, namely Jean-Jacques Vallet, during the press presentation. Then we all were off to dine.

It was a nice and relaxing dinner, the savoury part was created by Frederic Goisset (trivia: he’s French, all of his three dishes had an Italian-pasta-echo: cannelloni, ravioli and Sardinian fregola) and the dessert was the work of Nicolas Durosseau, the best dish, a Chaud-froid de meringue with a surprise: salt crystals. All were happy, even madame Dominique Loiseau: “As my husband used to say: c’est bon”. There’s little to discuss, in front of a good dish.

On the contrary, in view of the jury work I carefully read the regulations. It may seem a given fact, but it is hardly the case and in fact I’m writing about it. It’s almost a book. Not that in Italy we’re not capable of organising contest, quite the contrary. However, we’re more tolerant and understanding and when we go abroad we always receive a hard blow, as in the latest editions of the Bocuse d’Or (by the way, the European finals will be in Stockholm, Sweden, on May 7-8th). We should follow the example of our cousins since we have to compete with them what with restaurants, hotels, tourism, food products and wine.

Here are the most significant elements of Festival Loiseau in which six chefs from the Constance establishments, coming from Mauritius, Maldives and Seychelles, will compete. The have shared a long eve with six European starred chefs who tomorrow, however, will keep out of the kitchen. The dishes (a vegetarian dish of their choice and a main dish with a set theme, duck breast) will have to include 9 ingredients chosen by the organisers, even all in one dish, in the case of risk-lovers. These ingredients go from the ever-present (here in Mauritius) lemongrass to white beans, from Madagascar honey to macadamia nuts.

The competitors are obliged to serve a duck breast but since thet receive a whole (French) duck, they can also use some other cut, with two recommendations: the fillet needs to be the correct pink and the dish must be already portioned. They’re not allowed to divide it into portions in the dining room. Moreover: the use of typical spices is obligatory. And here a whole array of fears starts, all linked to how hot the spices can be.

The serving dishes will be 12, overall, six soup dishes and six normal dishes. The two set models are indicated in the regulations, including their catalogue code. You never know. And the sauces, so dear to the French? No worries, a sauce boat will be included, while molecular cuisine is perhaps not forbidden but not encouraged either. However, it is peculiar to note that the winner (to be announced on Saturday) will receive the complete Modernist Cuisine series.

The first starter will be out at 12.30, one every 10 minutes according to a strict timeline. The last meat-based dish will arrive at 2.20 pm, then 10 minutes later it will be time for casting the votes, for summing them up and for jury discussions. With a last note to be made: each dish can obtain a maximum of 50 points, according to four criterions, the fourth one being the most important, counting 20 points. As written on page 5: “Le goût, messieurs, le goût, as Bernard Loiseau used to say”. Taste above all: after all, if a dish is tasteless, what dish can it be?

3. To be continued (see episode one here and episode two here)