Julio Pizarro is the finalist of Chef Balfegó Germany

• The final of the seventh edition of the international professional gastronomy competition will be held on October 28th at the Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Madrid.

The chef Julio Pizarro, from the restaurant Pizarro Fine Dining, will be one of the eight finalists of the 7th edition of the Chef Balfegó International Gastronomy Competition, to be held in Madrid on 28 October, after having been proclaimed winner of the semifinal held in Germany.

The German semi-final was held in The BMW Welt EssZimmer by Käfer, Munich, with six German chefs vying for first place. The jury, who praised the high level of all the participants, consisted of three top German chefs:  Tohru Nakamura, from Tohru in der Schreiberei**⁠ (Munich); The Duc Ngo, from the restaurant Le Duc Berlin⁠⁠ (Berlin), and Christian Sturm-Willms, from Yunico* (Bonn).

Julio competed in the German semifinals alongside: Jay Lee, from the restaurant Junsui⁠ (Meerbusch); Josef Weig, from the restaurant Storstad* (Regensburg); Marvin Böhm, from the restaurant Aqua*** (Wolfsburg); Maximilian Hühnergarth, from Barra Berlin  (Berlin), and Sascha Kurgan, from Skykitchen Berlin*⁠ (Berlin).

The BMW Welt hosted the awards ceremony, held on the same day at 19:00, and once again with the support of Balfegó partners: TheFork, Fagor Professional, Le Nouveau Chef, Caviaroli, Porto Muiños, Minami Cuchillos Japoneses, Gin Raw, Oro Bailén, Trivio, Yamaaoi, Chatka Seafood and Alte Grafschatft. The evening began with a kaitai ceremony, that consists of the cutting of 150 kg Balfegó bluefin tuna. All the attendees then enjoyed a menu designed and prepared by the Balfegó team exclusively for the occasion, where different cuts of the bluefin tuna were served.

The grand final of the Chef Balfegó contest will be held on 28 October in Madrid. The following finalists have been confirmed: Cristóbal Muñoz, Ambivium* (Peñafiel, Valladolid); Lander Cornago, Arzak*** (San Sebastián); Pablo Zuazu, Via Veneto* (Barcelona) Paula Gutiérrez, Víctor Gutiérrez* (Salamanca) Rui Silva, Euskalduna Studio* (Porto, Portugal) Brandon de Bruin, De Krome Dissel* (Heelsum, Holland) Leonardo Viola, from A-Spurcacciuna (Savona, Italy), and Julio Pizarro, as German representative.

More than €10,000 in prizes

The jury of the seventh edition of Chef Balfegó, chaired by Martín Berasategui -(eight Michelin Stars and gastronomic ambassador of Balfegó) will consist of famous chefs in the culinary world, such as Toño Pérez, from Atrio***; Erwan Poudoulec, chef and technical director of the Le Cordon Bleu School of Haute Cuisine. Fina Puigdevall, from Les Cols** -Girona; Ricard Camarena, from Ricard Camarena**, and the food critics José Carlos Capel, from the magazine GastroAguidíam and Javi Antoja, from Montagud Editores. The jury will choose the three winners of the seventh edition of the contest organized by Balfegó, a company specializing in fishing, studying and marketing bluefin tuna, and the world’s largest exporter thanks to the quality and excellence of its product.

The jury will rate the flavor, aroma, and texture of each dish (40 points), the presentation (30 points), the balance of the ingredients (15 points), and the elaboration and correct handling of the product (15 points). The participating chefs may be aided by a kitchen assistant from their respective restaurants.

The winner of this edition will be announced at the Awards ceremony, to be held on Monday 28 October, at the Grand Teatro CaixaBank Príncipe Pío. The ceremony, which will be followed by a reception organized by the Tunateca Balfegó, will be presented by Carlos Latre, accompanied by Marina Valdés, the presenter in previous editions.

The prizes comprise more than €10,000 in cash, a trip to Japan, participation in a short film about the finalist chefs, and other special rewards. In addition to the trophy and a set of special Japanese knives for fish, the winning chef will receive €6,000 in cash and a trip to Japan for two people. An entire week dedicated to exploring the gastronomic and cultural richness of Japan. The second-place chef will receive €3,000 in prize money, while the third-place chef will get €1,000.