Conor Dalton, sous chef of Five Fields in Mayfair, was crowned the overall champion of the 2018 Best Dressed Irish Oyster Competition last night, after winning the event’s cold category and beating the hot category winner, Thomas Browne from Decatur during an exhilarating live cook-off at The Hero of Maida.
To claim the title, Dalton fought off competition from eleven of the leading seafood chefs in the UK to impress a panel of industry experts, including: Elizabeth Carter, Editor of the Good Food Guide; Bobby Groves, Chiltern Firehouse; Patrick Powell, renowned Irish chef; and author and restaurant critic, Joe Warwick.
Overall champion, Dalton impressed judges with his Sunshine & Iodine oysters with a watermelon salad and sweet and savoury dressing, which was praised for its presentation, creativity and combination of interesting flavours.
Meanwhile, Browne came out on top in the hot category with his dish New Orleans Chargrilled Oysters topped with garlic parmesan butter, Cajun spices and hot sauce, which was praised for its inventiveness whilst at the same time allowing the original flavour of the oyster to come through.
Both category winners were presented with a state-of-the-art engraved chef’s knife on the day; while Dalton also took home a trip to Ireland to visit some of the fantastic seafood producers that supply high-end restaurants throughout the UK.
Dalton commented, “I’m honoured to have been crowned this year’s Best Dressed Irish Oyster champion. With some of the UK’s leading seafood chefs in the running, the competition was fierce, which makes the victory all the sweeter. I’m fascinated by Irish oysters, so the icing on the cake will be visiting some of the country’s leading seafood producers.”
Michelle Butler, General Manager at Bord Bia added, “From Galway to Carlingford, some of the world’s finest rock and native oysters grow in Irish waters and this event is a celebration of the quality of those magnificent molluscs and the talent of shuckers and seafood chefs across the UK. We were truly blown away by the quantity and calibre of entries this year, so immensely well done to Conor for coming out on top.”
Pictured left to right is: Michelle Butler, Conor Dalton, Brian Turner, and Nigel Barden.
The 12 finalists:
Conor Dalton – Five Fields, Mayfair, London
Thomas Browne – Decatur, London
Mark Wadsworth – Riddle & Finns, Brighton, Sussex
Nathan Richardson – The Guinea Grill, Mayfair, London
Doug Grigg – Oyster Shack, Bigbury, Devon
Mark Taft – Assheton Arms, Downham, Lancashire
Matthew Leivers – The Star Inn The Harbour, Whitby, Yorkshire
Karol Marciszewski – Fancy Crab, Marylebone, London
Mark O’Brien – The Dairy, Clapham, London
Andy Wood – Wrights Brothers, Borough, London
Daniel Plumb – Oyster Shack, Bigbury, Devon
Dovydas Vasiovas - Wrights Brothers, Battersea, London
