"paul bocuse" news and stories

Have you heard of the Bocuse d'Or? A year or two ago, the answer would probably have been a firm no. But over the last couple of years, it's been popping up in the news and around the dinner tables of foodies more and more frequently.

Maybe you caught the "Top Chef" episode, where contestants competed in a Bocuse d'Or-inspired challenge. Or perhaps you've read about Andrew Friedman's just-released book "Knives at Dawn," which tells the tale of the most recent American team -- from the rigorous training to the big competition, which involves preparing two ridiculously complex dishes served on enormous mirrored platters.

The contest, often described as the Olympics of the culinary world, began in 1987 in Lyon, France, under the leadership of Chef Paul Bocuse, who Tim Ryan of the Culinary Institute of America described as "Elvis Presley and the Beatles rolled into one" at Monday's semifinals announcement. Despite America's recent thirst for cook-offs and throw-downs, the high-end culinary competition has been slow to gain recognition in the United States. But last year, heavy-hitters Daniel Boulud, also from Lyon, and Thomas Keller got behind the American effort to change all that.

Without further adieu here are the 12 semi-finalists bidding to represent the USA in 2011. Or as superstar chef and chairman of the board for Bocuse d'Or USA Foundation, Daniel Boulud simply put it, "Voilà."

1. Luke Bergman, the Modern, New York

2. Danny Cerqueda, Carolina Country Club, Raleigh, N.C.

3. Michael Clauss, Daily Planet , Burlington, Vt.

4. Kevin Gillespie, Woodfire Grill, Atlanta, Ga.

5. James Kent, Eleven Madison Park, New York

6. Mark Liberman, Roxy's Black Sheep, West Palm Beach, Fla.

7. Christopher Parsons, Catch, Winchester, Mass.

8. Jennifer Petrusky, Charlie Trotter's, Chicago

9. John Rellah, New York Yacht Club, New York

10. Jeremie Tomczak, French Culinary Institute, New York

11. Andrew Weiss, the Chef's Workshop, Las Vegas

12. Percy Whatley, the Ahwahnee, Yosemite, Calif.

These semifinalists will compete on Feb. 6, 2010, at the CIA in Hyde Park, N.Y., to determine who will go on to represent the USA at the Bocuse d'Or competition in Lyons, France, in 2011.

If cooking is the way to one's heart, Daniel Boulud should be able to attribute much of his success to his understanding of food. "I think that every restaurant is the chef's soul," he says in documentary "A Certain Taste for America."

In an ongoing series entitled "Art de Vivre: The Art of Eating Today," led by the French Institute in New York City on Monday, a screening of the film (very doting on Boulud) was followed by a panel discussion reflecting upon the art of eating and, more specifically, the importance of sustainability and sourcing food.

As a world-renowned chef hailing from a small hamlet outside Lyon, Boulud has achieved his veritable empire -- 10 successful restaurants based in New York, Palm Beach, Las Vegas, Vancouver and Beijing -- by striving to keep a strict culinary focus on seasonal cooking and high-quality ingredients.

More on Boulud's rise to fame, and the panel discussion on sustainable produce, obesity in America, seasonal cooking and its debatable expenses, after the jump.