City College Culinary Students Jack McCambridge and Quis White Win Culinary Competition
On March 15, McCambridge and White competed in the final day of the contest, serving a three-course meal to 82 guests and judges at Bistro 888. On March 19, they were announced winners of the 15th Annual Culinary Clash.
On the evening of March 15, two ambitious student chefs, Jake McCambridge and Quis White, teamed up to bring forth a three-course menu to 82 guests on the final day of the culinary competition — held on March 1, 8 and 15.
The Culinary Clash is a student culinary competition launched by InterContinental San Francisco 15 years ago, partnering with City College Culinary Arts and Hospitality Studies Department since 2019.
“The program was born to give local culinary students an opportunity to gain real-world culinary experience," shared InterContinental Communications Consultant Keelin Marcoux in an email.
This year's competitors were City College student chefs Ed Castorena, Maliah Chin, Logan McGovern, Sonal Ruperal, Quis White and Jake McCambridge.
According to Norma Whitt, Director of Food & Beverage and Culinary Operations at InterContinental San Francisco, the student chefs are responsible for choosing the menu, designing the recipes, selecting the wine pairings, prepping the dishes and serving.
“For the majority of the prep, they are on their own,” Whitt said.
Days of Preparation
The days before the Sunday of March 15 were filled with hard work and preparation. McCambridge and White started prepping Friday morning at 8 a.m. sharp. Working vigorously through Saturday, the team had to stay overnight and continued until the end of the event on Sunday.
The meal began with an amuse-bouche complimentary of the restaurant, followed by a lovely 2023 sparkling Pinot Noir from Kivelstadt Cellars, pairing with the chicken liver mousse starter.
The starter exemplified what White described as “rustic but containing a remarkable complexity of flavors.” The piquant toasted fennel had been dressed in hot oil placed over the mild mousse and garnished with Sweet Alyssum blossoms — all carefully constructed to allow each component to be seen and tasted.
“We wanted to keep things simple, but not boring,” said White.
Next came a smoked black cod with heirloom yellow eye bean ragout, followed by a 2023 red “Sibling Rivalry” Pinot Noir. Though a little risky, the wine turned out to be an excellent choice to pair with the delicately sauteed fish.
The dessert, named “Le QuisQuis” by the team, was a play on Chef White’s name and the marquis chocolate cake at the center of the dish. The delicate and rustic confection of chocolate was constructed of an array of textures. This included chocolate mousse, the cake, caramel whipped cream, macerated berries, chocolate ganache, and espresso crumble. Amazingly complex and not too sweet.
Were the chefs happy with the outcome?
McCambridge recalled looking out at the dinner tables with satisfaction, seeing the guests smiling and enjoying the moment.
In the end, all their hard work paid off.
Winners Announcement
On March 19, in a very intimate ceremony at Bistro 888, this year's Culinary Clash finalists were announced, with McCambridge and White taking the win.
“For me, it was a huge moment,” said McCambridge.
He recalled all the hard and good work the other competitors did in the two previous nights. “I’m super happy and proud of what everyone accomplished for their own meals,” he added.
“It definitely felt like an honor,” said White. “Everybody did such a great job. I couldn’t believe that we were the ones to win.”
Both expressed the importance of teamwork during the entire process — highlighting InterContinental team support. "Having such a reliable team [was] such a huge thing for us,” said McCambridge.
“Everybody was so supportive… it rounded out the whole experience for us,” he added.
“For me,” said White, “the experience keeps coming back to how much you want something and how far you'll go for it.”
McCambridge shared that experience of working as a professional to build a menu from scratch — while serving a whole restaurant — helped keep his dream of becoming a chef alive.
“I want to continue to keep reaching new goals for myself and continue to grow,” he added.
Supporting Culinary Students
Culinary Clash holds an important role in supporting students in the program at San Francisco by fundraising scholarships and highlighting talented student chefs.
A portion of the sold tickets from each dinner is used to support the City College Culinary Department. All three nights had between 80 and 85 guests — all sold out.
Whitt said that the big incentive for the students, beyond having this experience on their resumes and beyond any prizes, is the pride. “I see a lot of pride in what they are doing,” she said on the day after the event.
