Oh what a night! Big Brother/Big Sister of Windsor and Essex County held their 29th annual Battle of Hors D’oeuvres last night at Caesars Windsor and it was incredible! Over 500 people attended and were treated to an amazing evening of good food, good drink all for a good cause.

Congratulations to all those participating!
Congratulations to all those participating!

I had the pleasure of acting as a critic alongside Ted Whipp, Chef John Kukucka of Essex Golf and Country Club and Chef Daniele Palanca of Ambassador Golf and Country Club.

As critics we grade each plate on taste, presentation, creativity and portion within two categories: Restaurant and Hospitality. This year proved to be a challenging one as there were so many creative and delectable entries making it difficult to make a decision. But a decision had to be made.

The winners are…..

Critic’s Choice

Restaurant: The Willistead Restaurant with Captain Beefheart Mini Taco (ground beef hearts, mole sauce, watermelon radish, golden beet pico de gallo, micro herb cilantro, queso blanco).

Hospitality: Parkside Grille with a Crab Croquette with mango puree, herbs and hickory sticks.

Battle of the Hors D'Oeuvres
Crab Croquette by Parkside Grille

People’s Choice:

1st Place – Smashed Apple Gourmet Catering with a Braised Pork Belly Blini (maple bourbon braised pork belly on a jalapeno, smoked cheddar corn cake topped with shredded heirloom carrot, organic pea tenders and apple chipotle aioli.

2nd Place – Sushi Guru with a Hawaiian Tuna Poke (truffled Hawaiian big eye tuna, cucumbers, tomatoes, sweet onion and soy air).

Hawaiian Tuna Poke by Sushi Guru
Hawaiian Tuna Poke

Local breweries and wineries included BREW, Colchester Ridge Estate Winery, Oxley Estate Winery, Sprucewood Shores Estate Winery and Walkerville Brewery.

Dessert was supplied by Sweet Revenge Bakeshop.

Congratulations to all those participating! It was an amazing evening with spectacular hors d’oeuvres!