This year's Bloomington Chefs Challenge, taking place on Aug. 3, will be the closest thing most people will ever get to being on the set of the now-canceled Food Network show “Iron Chef.”
The cooking contest will see three of Bloomington's top chefs compete in a secret ingredient cook-off in front of a panel of judges and an audience.
But for the first time in the competition's 16 years, the event will be held at Ivy Tech Community College's Bloomington campus rather than at the Buskirk-Chumley Theatre.
“Each chef will have a full kitchen,” explained Tim Klauger, assistant director of the Monroe County Community Kitchen.
That means that instead of portable stoves, chefs will have access to an Ivy Tech prep kitchen equipped with a six-burner stove, flat-top oven, Salamander broiler and deep fryer.
Kroger hopes this will allow chefs to create more variety in the dishes they make.
And 90 lucky ticket buyers will be able to watch the entire cooking process, both through a window looking into the cooking area and on monitors for a closer look.
Spectators will watch from Yellowwood Restaurant, which has indoor and outdoor seating, and because the viewing area is smaller this year, only 90 tickets will be available for sale.
“No one can go into the kitchen,” says Klafger. “There are observation windows, and we have monitors inside and outside that show what the chefs are doing.” Overhead cameras in each station provide a bird's-eye view of what each chef is doing.
“The amount of firepower our chefs can create has increased dramatically,” Krauger said of the food they can make. “They have the ability to do things they couldn't do before.”
Kroger said the new structure means this year's chefs are being asked to create dishes that are good enough to serve not only to the judges but also to attendees, who will be able to sample one dish from each chef.
Who are the contestants in this year's Community Kitchen Chef Challenge?
- Last year's winner, Dan Thomas, executive chef at The Elm, will return to defend his title. He will be working with sous chef Michael Kadalabec for the second year in a row.
- Chef Cody Glandorf of Osteria Lago will be competing alongside sous chef Ian Fletcher.
- Uptown Café chef Adam Nofsinger will be in charge of cooking along with sous chef Elmez Rashti.
Each chef learns the secret ingredient as their one-hour cooking session begins. They prepare three dishes and present them to the audience and the judges, who will decide the winner of the Golden Spatula Award.
How much are Chef's Challenge tickets and how can I get them?
Tickets are $100 and allow guests to sample one dish from each chef (three dishes total), and audience members will also enjoy hors d'oeuvres, a silent auction and a cash bar.
Tickets are selling fast and can be purchased online at https://events.idonate.com/chefschallenge2024 Proceeds from the Chef's Challenge will benefit the Monroe County Community Kitchen's hunger relief efforts.
Details of the 2024 Chef Challenge
The 2024 Chef's Challenge will be held on August 3rd from 6pm to 9pm. Doors open at 5pm. Ivy Tech Community College's Bloomington campus is located at 200 Daniels Way. We encourage you to use Entrance 7 on the north side of the building.
Editor's note: Carol Kugler is one of three judges for the Community Kitchen fundraiser.
