Local Restaurant and Baker Get International Recognition

By Rachelle Bowden in Food on Apr 20, 2005 4:51PM

Charlie Trotter might be an anti-foie gras name caller, but he's still doing it right at his restaurant. Charlie Trotter's was named the 14th best place to eat in the world by a panel of more than 600 chefs, food critics and restaurateurs. The restaurants were judged by culinary excellence, service and overall dining experience.

Trotter's was the only restaurant in Chicago to make the top 50 and one of only about 10 US restarants that made the list. Quite an accomplishment for Charlie. The top restaurant was a British place called The Fat Duck that's known for its sardine on toast sorbet and bacon and egg ice cream. Sardine on toast sorbet sounds disgusting to us, but bacon and egge ice cream.. everything's better with bacon, right?

Also, proving how much us Americans love our carbs, in Paris this week local baker Jory Downer helped an American team take first place in the Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie, the international artisan bread and pastry competition known as the olympics of baking.

Downer is the co-owner of Bennison's Bakery in Evanston and was part of a 3-person American team that beat out teams from 12 different countries. The other members of the team were an instructor at the San Francisco Baking Institute and the owner of Essential Baking Company in Seattle. The team had 8 hours to make more than 80 loaves of bread, 90 pastries, 160 miniature sandwiches, and a bread sculpture representing their country. Only 8 hours for all of those pastries... sounds like the baking version of Iron Chef.. on STEROIDS.