For the second consecutive competition, a Thomas Keller protégé will represent the United States in the biennial Bocuse d’Or. Per Se executive sous chef Mathew Peters and his commis Harrison Turone came out victorious during yesterday’s selection process at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas, where four teams, including the Nomad chef de cuisine Brian Lockwood and his commis John Sullivan, competed for the chance to represent the country at the 2017 competition in Lyon. (Lockwood and Sullivan were the silver medalists.) The Bocuse d’Or is always an intense event with extremely rigorous training, but there’s arguably a bit more pressure on the American competitor this time around. Earlier this year, former French Laundry executive sous chef Philip Tessier and commis Skylar Stover made history when they won the silver medal, becoming the first American team to ever break into the top five, and the first non-European team to finish higher than third. Peters will be in good hands, though, as his coaching team will be led by Tessier himself and Gavin Kaysen. Will team U.S.A. make history again and win it all in 2017?
