PIVOTAL DECISION LEADS TO 2016 SANDWICH CHAMPION SUCCESS
ORANGE BEACH, AL. -- As a retired homemaker, Mary Kay Lang of Woodstock, GA is more experienced cooking dinner at home for friends and family than competing in culinary contests in front of panels of experienced judges. However, at the World Food Championships held last November at The Wharf in Orange Beach, AL, Lang excelled in her first appearance on the national stage, taking home $10,000 and the title of World Sandwich Champion.
The World Food Championships are unique as the largest competition in Food Sports and also as the only event where professional chefs compete against home cooks and avid weekend warriors who participate in contests across the country and around the world.
At the WFC, winners are selected tournament-style in nine food categories: Barbecue, Chili, Burger, Sandwich, Recipe, Bacon, Dessert, Seafood and a new category for 2016, Steak. After qualifying through regional and international competitions or online recipe contests, WFC participants cook two dishes for the chance to move on to the Top Ten round in their category, and ultimately the $10,000 prize for winning the bragging rights as champion of their division. Dishes are evaluated by trained judges using the WFC’s proprietary EAT (Execution/Appearance/Taste) criteria to determine who will advance to the Final Table to compete against the winners of the other eight categories.
Lang qualified for the WFC by winning both the Sandwich and the Chili categories at the Bacon Bash in River Falls, WI. She chose to compete with her sandwich recipes in Orange Beach, and that proved to be a very profitable decision. After the first two rounds where competitors presented judges with their take on a Cuban sandwich as well as a cook’s choice, Lang found herself in the Top Ten. Facing off against nine other sandwich masters, Lang easily outdistanced the competition with an offering featuring the compulsory ingredient of Red Gold Sriracha ketchup.
In addition to the ten grand in prize money and the title of World Sandwich Champ, Lang also earned a spot at the Final Table where the panel of judges included award-winning competitive chefs like Chris Lilly and Robyn Almodovar, celebrity chef/restaurateurs Bob Baumhower and Vic Vegas, and Katie Barreira, the Test Kitchen Director for Time, Inc. Food Studios. Faced with this distinguished panel of knowledgeable judges as well the world champions in eight other food categories, Lang consulted with family members who were serving as her assistants to come up with what she hoped would be the winning sandwich.
“It was definitely a team effort and a vital contribution to my success,” explains Lang. “We focused on the Chinese bao bun, a soft, steamed, sweet bun with marinated pork or beef and spicy salad.” In the end, the team’s bao bowed out short of winning the grand prize, but Lang did go home with a few great things. “My fondest memory is meeting the interesting and professional competitors who were so friendly and supportive. And $10,000 is a real bonus!”
« Back to News
Subscribe for
Email Notifications SUBMIT
Archive
- August 2017
- July 2017
- June 2017
- May 2017
- April 2017
- March 2017
- February 2017
- January 2017
- December 2016
- November 2016
- October 2016
- September 2016
- August 2016
- July 2016
- June 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- July 2015
- June 2015
- May 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- September 2014
- August 2014
- July 2014
- June 2014
- May 2014
- April 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- January 2014
- December 2013
- November 2013
- October 2013
- September 2013
- August 2013
- July 2013
- June 2013
- May 2013
- April 2013
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013