1st PLACE IN PRESTIGIOUS COMPETITION IN PARIS FOR CIT’S DANAY BERHANE PRAISED BY FRENCH AMBASSADOR TO IRELAND

Dr Noel Murray, Head of Department of Tourism & Hospitality said “This is an outstanding achievement for one of our culinary students to be recognised on the international stage. I am delighted for Danay, as he has tremendous talent, but this wouldn’t have happened without the dedication of the lecturing team who have helped him hone and develop his skills, and especially my colleagues Sinead Clancy & Lisa O’Brien who mentored him for the competition”.Danay was teamed up with Vincent Bigioni of Institut Paul Bocuse and their prize is a week-long culinary discovery trip in France, along with a stage in Epicure (Hotel Bristol Restaurant, Gastronomique in Paris).

On 13^thFebruary last, a jury comprised of representatives from the French Embassy in Ireland, the National Dairy Council, the Centre Interprofessional de l’Economic Latiere, the Irish Embassy in France, the Higher Education Authority in Ireland and Campus France, selected ten finalists for the competition from 27 institutions in France and Ireland and five Irish students along with five French students went on to display their culinary skills in Paris on April 3^rd, before Danay and Vincent were awarded the overall prize of Dairy Chef 2019.  

Dr Barry O’Connor, President of CIT, commented “The Institute is very proud of this outstanding culinary achievement by Danay Berhane in Paris, arguably the world centre of gastronomy. It reflects the highest level of training and education in CIT’s Tourism & Hospitality Department. The Department’s students and staff were awarded the highest of praise recently by His Excellency the Ambassador of France, Monsieur Stéphane Crouzat, at the annual Gout de France event jointly hosted by CIT and the French Ambassador.”

Mr. Stephane Crouzat, the French Ambassador to Ireland, commented on this year’s competition that “I am delighted to see Irish students going to Paris for the second edition of Dairy Chef. The promotion of student mobility is central to the activities of the France Ireland Network for Culinary Arts, Hospitality & Tourism. This culinary competition will highlight the quality education students can gain through the FICAHT which will equip them with the technical and language skills for the job market of tomorrow”.

The Department of Tourism and Hospitality at CIT encompasses the areas of Culinary Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Beverage Industry Management and has over 600 students.