Newfoundlander Ross Larkin wins Top Chef Canada
Using a pitcher plant to pour sauce over partridge, St. John's chef Ross Larkin won the title of Top Chef Canada.
The winner of Season 6 was crowned on Sunday night's finale in Toronto, which pitted Larkin against chef Mark Singson of Vancouver.
"This is a life-changing event for me because I believed in the food I was cooking," Larkin said, according to the finale's recap.
People gathered at the Merchant Tavern in downtown St. John's to watch the show, and the place erupted when the hometown chef won — Larkin's mom danced with joy.
Final challenge, familiar face
The judges asked the two final chefs to "show the judges your personality on a plate."
And there was a bit of a twist for the final faceoff — Season 3 winner Matthew Stowe and Larkin's boss, Jeremy Charles, chef and co-founder of Raymonds restaurant in downtown St. John's, returned to assist Singson and Larkin, respectively.
Larkin first presented a small bite-style plate that featured moose heart tartare, whelk skewer and cod chitlin with capelin gold leaf.
"We eats it all in Newfoundland," Larkin and Charles joked as they presented the first dish.
Ross's other dishes that ultimately helped win him the competition included a sea urchin and diver scallop, pan-roasted cod, wild hare and partridge and a dessert of roasted parsnip chip, cream with apples and snowberries.
One judge, chef Mark McEwan, declared it the "toughest showdown ever," but ultimately it was Larkin who got to hear the words that the 11 chefs who started out this season wanted to hear:
"You are Canada's Top Chef!"
