It was a truly proud moment for the directors and staff of Proud Caterers Limited, the catering operators of the four-star Cavalieri Hotel in St Julian’s Bay.

The Cavalieri team was awarded the coveted gold award for its outstanding performance in the Parade des chefs at the Mediterranean Food and Drink Festival 2007 held at Ta’ Qali.

The festival events were judged by a panel of foreign Master Chefs who were hosted by the Malta Culinary Association.

The Parade des chefs event is a real challenge for any catering team and involves preparing (from scratch) and serving (to perfection) a full three-course dinner for 50 guests within a strict three-and-a-half-hour timeframe.

The kitchen team was composed of Junior Sous Chef Matthew Sammut (Team Captain), Senior Sous Chef Paul Hili, Junior Sous Chef Anthony Grech and Chef Patissiere Josef Degiorgio while the sumptuous meal and accompanying wines were served by Restaurant Manager Daniel Falzon, Chef de Rang Anika Grogan and Sommelier David Bonett.

Besides this prestigious award, Cavalieri Hotel chefs also achieved two silver medals, eight bronze medals and three merit awards in other individual events held during the weekend festival.

The directors of Proud Caterers Ltd, Kevin Attard and Jonathan Beacom were overwhelmed by the results and praised their very young team for this outstanding achievement. “When one considers that the average age of the chefs in our kitchen is around 25 years, we are obviously delighted with the results! We were confident that our chefs would do well, and we encouraged them to participate even if just for the experience.