The culinary team from the Caesar Rodney High School from Camden reclaimed the championship title Sunday evening in the 2024 National ProStart Invitational.
Teams from 48 states came to the contest which featured more than 400 students and a roster of restaurant and food service industry judges. The team from Caesar Rodney returned to the winner’s circle after a second-place finish in 2023 and won first in 2022.
The contest takes its cues from “Chopped” and “Shark Tank,” providing a platform for the students to compete for a share of scholarships totaling $200,000.
The competition was hosted by the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation.
Caesar Rodney has won the Delaware culinary title for five years in a row, the longest winning streak in state ProStart history. This year the team from Odessa High School won the management title in Delaware and also advanced to the National Invitational.
Competing culinary teams prepared, plated, and presented a three-course dining menu without access to electricity or running water, using two butane burners.
They were assessed by judges on several factors, including food safety and sanitation, costing, preparation, and plating/presentation. Simultaneously, 48 restaurant management teams presented and defended original restaurant concepts.
The Caesar Rodney High School culinary team earned top honors for executing three recipes: Hand-Rolled Pork Dumplings, Pepper-Crusted Steak Diane, and Lemon Meringue Tart.
Judges also reviewed the teams’ detailed cooking instructions, culinary techniques and menu cost analysis. Each student on the first place team received a $7,000 scholarship from the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation, plus additional scholarship awards for students moving to post-secondary culinary and hospitality programs.
