Too Many Chefs in the Kitchen: The Last Supper

by Stephanie Sherril
on Friday, September 25, 2009

It was another night of good food and fun when Factory assembled 10 top chefs working in Shanghai to create a unique 10-course dinner. This was the third installment of Factory's ‘Too Many Chefs in the Kitchen'. While the previous two events were cooking competitions amongst chefs with the diners determining the victors, this time there was no formal competition. Instead, each chef was tasked to impress guests with one dish they would serve as their last supper on earth.

The 10-course meal began with Juniper Scented Breast of Duck by Nolan Ledarney from Bund View. The play of sweet peaches and vinegar along with the duck, presented artfully in a gin glass, set high expectations for the evening. American chef Eric Brown then treated all with his down-home Gumbo of sausage, chicken and plump shrimp, followed by Chef Tony Tan of 1oz3, who aptly delivered his auspiciously titled Last Scallop in the World.

A sampling trio of savory Peruvian seafood bites from Chef Eduardo Vargas of Azul came next. Let's hope the Prawn Ceviche with Roasted Pepper-Tomato-Lime Vinaigrette will show up on his redesigned Azul menu. Inevitably there was a foie gras dish but happily the sweet Foie Gras Fruitini with apples and berries from Alvaro Bonilla, of El Toro, created a fantastic intermezzo to the meal. The host of the evening, Chef Sean Jorgensen from Factory served Fresh Oysters with a fruity compote. A juicy, crispy suckling pig was expertly delivered from chefs Yago Marquez and Maxime Fanton of Restaurant Martin.

The most divine dish of the evening was created by Chef Dan Segall, who launched M1NT and is now running his own catering business. He served roasted bone marrow slices, oxtail pieces and a sweet roasted tomato marmalade on a thick crunchy crostini. We want this at our last supper. Rounding out the feast, there was a spicy tuna nori roll dubbed Chesterfield by Mike Solovey from Boxing Cat Brewery, and a sweet Deconstructed Apple Rhubarb Pastry from Shaun Anthony of Napa Kitchen & Bar for dessert.

These dinners always promise to be fantastic culinary evenings, when gifted chefs are given the freedom to create something truly unique and the challenge of being judged alongside their compatriots. Since this was not my last supper on earth, I'm already anticipating the next ‘Too Many Chefs in the Kitchen' at Factory.