There was very little fanfare, but Winnipeg played host to its own Iron Chef competition.

Taking place at the Winnipeg Convention Centre, the competition was part of Centrex, Manitoba’s largest tradeshow for hotels, restaurants, bars, and foodservice providers.

The competition featured eight teams from local restaurants: Provence Bistro, Bistro 725, The Fairmont, Dandelion Eatery, The Winnipeg Squash Raquet Club, Bellissimo, The Assiniboia Downs Restaurant and Mirlycourtois.

Just like its TV namesake, the competition gave chefs one hour to develop as many dishes as they could using the secret ingredient. Their culinary creativity was judged on presentation, composition, originality and organization.

Day one pitted Bistro 725 against Provence; The Fairmont vs. the Squash Club; Bellissimo vs. The Assiniboia Downs; and Mirlycourtois vs. Dandelion. The secret ingredient the teams were tasked with using were tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms, and apples respectively.

Bistro 725 advanced, as did The Fairmont, Bellissimo and Dandelion. In the second heat,The Fairmont knocked out Bistro 725 with scallops as the secret ingredient, and Dandelion went to the the final with their shrimp sensations.

But at the end of the second day, it was chef Jon Royal, Banquet Chef at the Fairmont and their team who stood proud, having taken their plates of pork to the podium.

Restaurant Makeover star chef David Adjey was on hand to judge the final and present the team with their trophy and $900 cheque.