{"id":277110,"date":"2026-05-19T20:23:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T20:23:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/277110\/"},"modified":"2026-05-19T20:23:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T20:23:10","slug":"westin-cape-coral-hosts-annual-masters-of-the-craft-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/277110\/","title":{"rendered":"Westin Cape Coral hosts annual Masters of the Craft competition"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Zachary Urban, first place culinary winner. Zachary utilized the secret ingredient \u2013 prickly pear \u2013 to create a Latin-inspired dish, utilizing salmon, carrots, mashed potato, and a sauce rendered from the pear. Urban now proceeds to the regional competition.<\/p>\n

SARAH MCCORMICK<\/p>\n

2 \/ 9<\/p>\n

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Zachary Urban, first place culinary winner. Zachary utilized the secret ingredient \u2013 prickly pear \u2013 to create a Latin-inspired dish, utilizing salmon, carrots, mashed potato, and a sauce rendered from the pear. Urban now proceeds to the regional competition.<\/p>\n

SARAH MCCORMICK<\/p>\n

3 \/ 9<\/p>\n

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Angela Frazier, first place beverage winner, crafted a tall, frozen full-flavor dragonfruit cocktail. Frazier now proceeds to the regional competition. (Photo provided by Silvia Marmo)<\/p>\n

Photo Provided by Silvia Marmo<\/p>\n

4 \/ 9<\/p>\n

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Judge panelists taste test the various dishes from the competitors. Included in the panel are Ricky Rambisoon, wine manager of Farmer Joes in Cape Coral; Chef Matt Geiger, of Savour For Myers, and Richard Bagdasarian of Cheney Brothers in Fort Myers.<\/p>\n

SARAH MCCORMICK<\/p>\n

5 \/ 9<\/p>\n

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Westin\u2019s Executive Chef Victoria Wenning purchased fresh ingredients the morning of the competition, so all competitors had everything they needed to create their dishes. Wenning also got to choose the secret ingredients, which she states was a lot of fun.<\/p>\n

SARAH MCCORMICK<\/p>\n

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Chef Matt Geiger of Savor Restaurant in Fort Myers sat on the judge panel for the day\u2019s competition <\/p>\n

(Photo provided by Silvia Marmo)<\/p>\n

Photo provided by Silvia Marmo<\/p>\n

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Various ingredients competitors were able to “shop” for before beginning their dishes. In total, competitors were given 30 minutes to shop and create their meals.<\/p>\n

SARAH MCCORMICK<\/p>\n

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Fish and pasta plate.<\/p>\n

Photo provided by Silvia Marmo<\/p>\n

Photo provided by Silvia Marmo<\/p>\n

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Salmond plate. Photo provided by Silvia Marmo<\/p>\n

Photo provided by Silvia Marmo<\/p>\n

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Cape Coral was host to one of the area\u2019s most anticipated annual culinary competitions last Tuesday, the Marriot International\u2019s annual Masters of the Craft \u2013 a competition worthy of praise from the King of the Kitchen, Gordon Ramsey himself. <\/p>\n

The competition was hosted by the Westin Cape Coral at Marina Village, where various talents from Westin\u2019s own kitchen showcased their abilities during a two-tier challenge. The kicker: There was a secret ingredient in each segment of the competition \u2013 first being dragon fruit, and the second, prickly pear. <\/p>\n

The eight competitors had a quick 30 minutes to gather their ingredients, which were bought fresh that morning, and whip up something prize-worthy for the judges. In addition, there was a drink-making competition as well, in which not all culinary competitors took part. Ingredients included fresh proteins such as chicken, shrimp, pork, steak, and salmon, as well as fresh fruits and vegetables, among other pantry staples.<\/p>\n

In attendance were management officials from the Westin, competition judges, and others. Also in attendance were culinary students from Cape Coral High Tech, who were able to observe the art of culinary competition and grow their excitement for their craft while learning new methods and tricks.<\/p>\n

The panel of three competition judges included well-known local Chef Matt Geiger of Savour Resteraunt in Fort Myers; Ricky Rambisoon, wine manager of Farmer Joes in Cape Coral; and Richard Bagdasarian of Cheney Brothers in Fort Myers.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom a professional standpoint, I thought the food was great,\u201d Geiger said of the overall competition. \u201cI think that it\u2019s hard to think under pressure, especially when you get minutes to shop and prep and all that. I do think there was some huge missed opportunities with ingredients here. Out of all eight contestants, we had four salmon dishes and two mahi dishes. I feel like there was other great stuff over there. There was shrimp, steak, pork, nobody used any of the herbs and very little spices. It was very weird.\u201d <\/p>\n

But in a good way, he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think everyone did super good,\u201d he said. \u201cThe winner that was chosen was my favorite. Judging people is hard because you want to be fair, but this is a learning opportunity for them, too, so you don\u2019t really want to crush their spirit or anything.\u201d <\/p>\n

When asked if he would do it again, he replied, \u201cOh yeah, this was fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

After all competitors poured their heart and creativity into each facet of the dishes they created, the panelists tasted each one, judging on a variety of factors. Ultimately, the Culinary winner was declared to be Zachary Urban, and the Beverage winner was declared to be Angela Frazier. <\/p>\n

Tied for second place were Brooklyn Deleon and Paris Jenkins.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a lot of fun today. It was a great competition,\u201d said Urban of his experience and win.<\/p>\n

Zachary\u2019s winning dish consisted of salmon with a special sauce and vegetables. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe ingredient was prickly pear. I made salmon with a sub-tropic, Latin flavor profile with the seasoning and the sauce I made,\u201d he said. \u201cI reduced my prickly pear into a sauce, and separated all of the solid fruit from that and turned it into a pear relish to go with the salmon, served over a semi-mashed potato with pan-roasted carrots. I\u2019m happy with my presentation and the overall flavor profile. I just had so much fun actually getting to compete, and that\u2019s the most fun part for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Frazier\u2019s winning drink consisted of a dragonfruit base, which was her mystery ingredient, and it was crafted into a tall full flavor frozen cocktail worthy of first prize.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re very excited to have a second year runner up that came in first place this year that is going to continue on with the culinary legacy and journey, and continue growing with Marriott,\u201d said Executive Chef Victoria Wenning of Urban. \u201cWe\u2019re just very excited.\u201d<\/p>\n

Everyone had a great time showing off their skills, and the friendly competition was fun for all. <\/p>\n

Next, Urban and Frazier proceed to the next level of competition to showcase their skills at the regional competition. From there, the winners proceed to nationals. <\/p>\n


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