The home of Cochon555 in LA, the Viceroy Santa Monica was host to around 500 guests who enjoyed cocktails and plates of heritage breed pork. The winner of Prince of Porc was Chef Jonathan Granada of Otium. Jared Hooper of Faith and Flower took home honors in the Somm Smackdown competition for his wine/pork pairing of a Kruger-Rumpf 2015 Scheurebe “Spatlese” from Nahe, Germany, while barkeep Chris Amirault of Otium won Punch King for his cocktail with Breckenridge Bourbon, rum, allspice and vanilla. Amirault will represent alongside Chef Jonathan Granada this autumn at the national championship in Chicago.
This year’s competing chefs included 2017 Los Angeles Prince Jonathan Granada of Otium, Larry Monaco of Cast Restaurant & Lounge, Dakota Weiss of Estrella, Kyle Johnson of Bourbon Steak Los Angeles and Bruce Kalman of Union. “The chefs prepared boldly flavored dishes using heritage breed pigs from family farms in a nose-to-tail, whole-animal showcase for a crowd of pork-loving gourmands.”
The winning menu, as judged by the discerning palates of Jonathan Gold of Los Angeles Times, Christopher Ford of Beverly Wilshire, and Chef Walter Manzke of Republique, included and Brioche; Pork Shoulder with Artichoke Barigoule and Vin Jaune; a Croquette with Mojo and Potato; and finished with a Cider – Eric Bordelet Poire Granit from France.
