The North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association (NCRLA) proudly announces the eighth season of the NCRLA Chef Showdown, North Carolina’s premiere culinary and mixology competition.
This annual competition is designed to promote and spotlight the talent of chefs, pastry chefs, and mixologists as well as the vast array of local products, produce and proteins available across the state of North Carolina.
“We are proud to see 2024 mark the eighth year of competition for our annual Chef Showdown series. With this competition, the NCRLA continues to showcase the incredible talent of our chefs, pastry chefs, bartenders, and distilleries from across the state,” says Lynn Minges, president and CEO. “It’s always exciting to start a new season of competition. To see the energy, creativity, and passion of all of the competitors who will feature local North Carolina ingredients as they compete, is inspiring and delicious, too.”
Presented by Got To Be NC, aka, the NC Department of Agriculture, the Chef Showdown features culinary and mixology competitors who will showcase North Carolina proteins, produce and products on competition plates and in competition craft cocktails.
For these North Carolina culinarians, it’s all about keeping it local, supporting as many North Carolina farms and producers as they can on each plate and in each glass. After that, it’s up to each competitor to really take it over the top.
The 2024 preliminary rounds of culinary competition will feature 53 talented chefs presenting savory dishes and 11 amazing pastry chefs from across the state who have been selected to cook their way through the first rounds of competition on the road to the 2024 win.
Go here for the 2024 listing of each of our culinary and mixology competitors.
Each culinary competitor is invited to compete in one of five preliminary rounds of competition.
Then, based on the preliminary round judges scores and notes, 26 chefs (18 chefs making savory plates and 8 pastry chefs) will become 2024 Chef Showdown semi-finalists and will be invited to compete in one of two regional rounds of competition.
Based on their regional round scores, only 20 of these chefs – 15 savory chefs and five pastry chefs – will be finalists and as such, will be invited to move on to compete in the 2024 NCRLA Grand Finale.
20 teams of NC mixologists and distilleries will participate in one of two preliminary rounds of the 2024 mixology competition.
Then, based on judge’s scores and notes, 10 teams of mixologists and distilleries will be invited to move on to the semi-final regional rounds of mixology competition. The top scoring six semi-finalists will be invited to stir and shake it up at the 2024 NCRLA Grand Finale.
At stake, the coveted titles of NCRLA Chef of the Year and NCRLA Pastry Chef of the Year, NCRLA Mixologist & Distillery of the Year and the 2024 NCRLA Mocktail of the Year, all to be awarded at the competition’s Grand Finale on August 26, 2024, at Bay 7 at the American Tobacco District in Durham NC.
Top-title winners will also go on to become members of the prestigious 2024-2025 Got To Be NC team of culinary and beverage ambassadors.
New in 2024: An extended mixology competition this year begins with a pair of preliminary round competition dates, followed by two of regional semi-final rounds. The 20 participating teams of NC mixologists and distilleries will each participate in one of two preliminary rounds of mixology competition.
Then, based on judge’s scores and notes, 10 teams of mixologists and distilleries will be invited to move on to the semi-final regional rounds of mixology competition. The top scoring six semi-finalists will be invited to stir and shake it up at the 2024 NCRLA Grand Finale.
New in 2024: This year’s new “Born in the Carolinas Awards” will be awarded to the chef, pastry chef and bartender who best showcases the use of any Pepsi product cleverly and creatively incorporated into the ingredients in a savory plate, dessert and in a cocktail and mocktail. Competitors are not required to use Pepsi products in their competition dishes, cocktails and mocktails; but if they do, they are eligible to be considered for one of these four awards to be presented by Pepsi. These four winners will be announced in early August 2024.
Featured again in 2024: Four “Undeniably Dairy Awards” to be awarded in mid-August, prior to the Chef Showdown Grand Finale to the chef, pastry chef and bartender who showcased the best use of NC cow’s milk dairy products in a savory plate, a dessert, a cocktail and a mocktail. Competitors are not required to use dairy products in their competition dishes and cocktails, but if they creatively and cleverly use cow’s milk dairy products in both rounds of competition, they are eligible to be considered for this quartet of additional 2024 accolades presented by The Dairy Alliance.
All preliminary and regional round competition events are private, open only to competing chefs, judges and select sponsors. Media is invited upon request.
The NCRLA is proud to compete at some of North Carolina’s finest community college culinary schools throughout this competition, each one serving to teach and inspire the North Carolina hospitality industry of tomorrow. This year we are holding our mixologist preliminary and semi-final competitions at home base for some of our previous champions and runners-up.
Go Here for a list of all of our culinary and mixology competition venues.
Tickets for the August 26 NCRLA Chef Showdown Grand Finale will go on sale in mid-July 2024. Mark your calendars now. Stay tuned for details.
About NCRLA
The North Carolina Restaurant & Lodging Association (NCRLA) NCRLA is the driving force behind the state’s $30 billion hospitality industry. The mission is to Protect, Educate, and Promote the North Carolina hospitality industry. To learn more information about NCRLA or its membership opportunities and cost-saving benefits, please visit www.ncrla.org.
