FORT LEE, Va. (March 29, 2023) Sailors assigned to amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD-2) brought home two silver and two bronze medals during a Joint Military Culinary Competition in Fort Lee, Virginia, March 1-10, 2023.
Culinary Specialist 2nd Class Samuel Babativa and Culinary Specialist Seaman Jason Burns were selected to represent Essex on the U.S. Navy team during an event that hosted more than 200 U.S. military culinary specialists from around the world to compete in 14 different categories.
“When they first told me I was going to be attending this competition, I knew I had some major shoes to fill,” said Burns. “I didn’t really know what to expect. I was just honored to get to represent not only myself but my command.”
The Essex teams only had two months to formally prepare for the event, but they attribute their success to the training they receive in the Navy.
Burns and his team received first place overall, earning a special invitation to represent the Navy team at an armed forces competition in New Orleans this July.
“On the very last day, the Navy professional team had to come up with a four-course meal cooked out of an army mobile-kitchenette, and they only had an hour to cook for 50 people,” said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jeremy Domagalski, food service officer aboard Essex. “It was the most impressive meal I've ever had."
Babativa received second place in the cold dessert category for making an entire bonsai tree centerpiece, complete with a dragon, bird, and flowers – all made from chocolate.
“This competition has really been a fun challenge that absolutely pushed me out of my comfort zone,” said Babativa.
Babativa said he had never worked with chocolate before the contest, but the judges praised his team’s result and rewarded them with silver medals.
"The master chefs told Babativa’s team that they were the most remarkable chefs they've ever seen for first-time competitors,” said Domagalski.
The U.S. Navy teams combined earned nine silver and six bronze medals, which is the highest recorded by the U.S. Navy during this competition to date.
The judges congratulated them on their performance and intend to nominate a mentor master chef in the San Diego area to keep their skill set growing, said Domagalski.
"The network they established from here is going to give them contact with some of the most renowned chefs in the world,” said Domagalski. "Everybody's looking for them right now, now that their names are out there."
Burns and his team were selected to represent the entire armed forces as the military's best chefs during the 2023 American Culinary Federation national convention in New Orleans scheduled for July 16-19, 2023. If they do well enough in New Orleans, they could get selected to become part of the Olympic team, said Domagalski.
“I want to motivate the new generation of culinary specialists to try these kinds of competitions,” said Babativa. “This event is like a jewelry showcase. It’s a really big window where everybody gets to see what we can do as professionals.”
Essex is dry docked in San Diego conducting a maintenance period to upgrade and refurbish many key systems aboard.
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