• Winner: Trinidad & Tobago – Naomi Lovell, student of the Trinidad and Tobago Hospitality and Tourism Institute
• Gold Medals:Dwayne Sinclair; Barbados – Javon Cummins; and Trinidad & Tobago – Naomi Lovell
• Silver Medals:Anguilla – Mtima Daniels; Curacao – Ashohary Julian; Jamaica – Jay Samuda-Thomas; Puerto Rico – Julio Lamberty; and Suriname – Vanina Candes Tjon a Tjoen
• Bronze Medals: Bonaire – Giovannie Veld; and U. S. Virgin Islands – Ilejah Crabbe 

   

Individual Competitions

         Following are the results of the individual competitions that took place during Taste of the Caribbean:

Caribbean Ice Carving Competition

• Silver Medal & Ice Carver of the Year: Jamaica – Hamac Palms
• Bronze Medal: Bahamas  –  Ancilleno Solomon; and Jamaica  – Dwight Cross

Seafood Competition

• Winner Seafood Competition: Barbados – Nathan Crichlow
• Gold Medals: Barbados  – Nathan Crichlow; and Suriname  – Sherwin Alexander
• Silver Medals:Anguilla  – Laureen Anique Perkins; Jamaica – Gian Stewart; Jamaica – Rochelle Grindley; and Trinidad & Tobago – Jeremy Lovell
• Bronze Medals:Bahamas – Ron Johnson; Curacao – Shanot Ocalia; Puerto Rico – Joel Rodriguez; and U. S. Virgin Islands – Gary Klinefelter

Certified Angus Beef Competition sponsored by Certified Angus Beef®

• Gold Medal and Winner Beef Competition: Bahamas – Jamal Small
• Silver Medals:Barbados – Kenneth Whittington; Curacao – Adriyel Lourens; Suriname – Randy O’Brien Smith; Suriname – Tirsa Semaja Braumuller; Trinidad & Tobago – Adrian Cumberbatch; and U. S. Virgin Islands – Dennis Vanterpool
• Bronze Medals: Anguilla – Claudio Gumbs; Jamaica – Dwight Cross; and Puerto Rico – Angel Santiago

Rums of Puerto Rico Mystery Basket Competition

• Winner Rums of Puerto Rico Mystery Basket Competition: Puerto Rico
• Gold Medals: Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands
• Silver Medals:Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago
• Bronze Medals:Anguilla, Bahamas, Bonaire, Curacao, Jamaica and Suriname

Cheesecake Competition sponsored by Alouette, Anco and International Dairy Farms

• Winner Cheesecake Competition:Jamaica – Teresa Clarke
• Gold Medals: Curacao – Carlos Antonij; Jamaica – Teresa Clarke; Puerto Rico – Pablo Colon; and Trinidad & Tobago – Janelle Olliviere
• Silver Medals: Bahamas – Ron Johnson; Barbados – Julian Broome; Barbados – Michael Harrison; and Jamaica – Rochelle Grindley
• Bronze Medals: Suriname – Giovanni Asmo; and U. S. Virgin Islands – George Sittig
• Honorable Mention: Bonaire – Norison Conquet

Following are the special awards that were bestowed at Taste of the Caribbean:

• Best Team for Taste of the Islands: Trinidad & Tobago
• Taste of the Islands People’s Choice, sponsored by Ask Me Inc: Puerto Rico
• Best Use of Chocolate, sponsored by Albert Uster Imports: Team Bahamas for their team dessert Chocolate with Caribbean Flavors White, Dark Chocolate, Lime and Passion Fruit Bavarian, Banana Ice Cream, Caramel White Chocolate Cream Cheese Ganache, Chocolate Cake, Spiced Mango Sauce, Ginger Pudding, Buttered Chocolate Crumble, Cinnamon Tuille
• Best Use of Certified Angus Beef – Sponsored by Certified Angus Beef®: Barbados – Nathan Crichlow
• Hans Schenk Commemorative Award for the Most Innovative Dish Utilizing Indigenous Ingredients: Team Bonaire for Fresh Mango Mousse Topped Carrot Cake served with Candied Red Pepper and Spicy Smoked Mango Salad, Red Pepper Paint and Cocoa Tuille Sticks
• Most Impressive/Creative Menu for a Gastronomy Event, Sponsored by Media Blast: Team Anguilla
• Best Rum Drink: Puerto Rico
• Best Vodka Drink: Trinidad & Tobago
• Best Non Alcoholic Drink: Puerto Rico
• Most Creative Cocktail: Chutney Bacchanal – Barbados
• Tony Mack Spirit of the Competition: Team Bahamas

Taste of the Islands

            One of the highlights over the course of the five days was the Taste of the Islands festival, presented by Ask Me, Inc., which was open to the public and saw 570 consumers at the event who came to sample gourmet Caribbean appetizers, desserts and signature cocktails, gather information about their favorite Caribbean destinations, and listen to authentic Caribbean music.

The Taste of the Islands highlights the street foods that are common throughout the region.  Each competing team was given a “protein mystery basket” with a large selection of ingredients in a common pantry.  From these ingredients the teams created two savory dishes, one dessert item and one rum-based cocktail.  Trinidad and Tobago took home “Best Team for Taste of the Islands” while Puerto Rico won the “People’s Choice” award sponsored by Ask Me, Inc.

Sponsors

            This year’s host sponsors include CHTA, Interval International and MasterCard Worldwide, Bartender of the Year sponsor: Rums of Puerto Rico, Chef of the Year sponsor: PRG Solutions; Pastry Chef of the Year sponsor: AUI – Albert Uster Imports; Taste of the Islands Sponsor: Ask Me, Inc. – All About Hospitality Solutions, Team of the Year sponsors: Alouette, Anco and International Dairy Farms; Sponsors: Certified Angus Beef, Exposure4, Henkell & Co., and Media Blast; Product Sponsors: Certified Angus Beef, Freshpoint, General Hotel & Restaurant Supply, Halperns’, Kent Quality Foods, Mountain States Rosen Company, Sysco and US Meat Export Federation; Media Supporters: Art & Gator, Caribbean Journal; HCP Aboard, Modern Luxury, and supporting sponsors American Airlines and Virgin Holidays.

For more information about Taste of the Caribbean visitwww.chtatasteofthecaribbean.com, www.Facebook.com/CHTATasteoftheCaribbean and Twitter.com/CHTATasteCarib or call (305) 443-3040.

Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association

The Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA) facilitates the full potential of the Caribbean hotel and tourism industry by serving members’ needs and building partnerships in a socially responsible and sustainable manner.  CHTA is the voice of the Caribbean hospitality industry for the development of the region in the highly competitive and sophisticated environment of international tourism. Today, tourism is widely recognized as a pivotal industry in the economy of the region – and CHTA functions as the common denominator for this industry in a region of diverse nationalities, languages and styles, identifying mutual problems and marshaling the resources of the active and allied members to devise solutions. CHTA represents all facets of the hospitality industry with more than 600 member hotels and over 300 allied members.

For more information, visit http://www.caribbeanhotelandtourism.com.  Follow CHTA on Facebook Facebook.com/CaribbeanHotelandTourismAssociation and TwitterTwitter.com/CHTAFeeds

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