ITE College West student wins cookoff for Gordon Ramsay internship

First year culinary arts student Koh Han Jie, 21, from ITE College West's Institut Paul Bocuse beat three other contestants to be the first intern at Michelin-starred chef Gordon Ramsay's Bread Street Kitchen at Marina Bay Sands.

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Here is the statement from Marina Bay Sands: 

In a showdown that is reminiscent of MasterChef, four culinary talents in Singapore battled their way to win a coveted spot in the Singapore kitchens of MasterChef judge Gordon Ramsay.

The culinary maestro, who is famously critical of participants in his own cooking programme, picked Koh Han Jie from ITE College West after an intense 10-minute showdown that tested the contestants' basic techniques and cooking skills. The task? Perfecting three egg dishes in 10 minutes. Han Jie will now have bragging rights to be the first intern to work in Bread Street Kitchen at Marina Bay Sands - Gordon's upcoming restaurant scheduled for an opening in 2015.

"Marina Bay Sands is home to some of the finest chefs in the world. This presents us with the opportunity to attract and nurture the next generation of local chefs. The search for the first intern at Bread Street Kitchen is an excellent example of how we constantly look for ways to pair our celebrity chefs with promising local talent. We have recruited over 300 local interns over the last four-and-the-half-years for our F&B training and mentorship programme. We will continue to do so as we evolve our dining offerings at Marina Bay Sands," said Mr. George Tanasijevich, President and Chief Executive Officer of Marina Bay Sands.

The cook-off which took place today at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre saw aspiring local chefs vie for the position by preparing three different types of egg dishes - soft boiled, poached and omelette - in 10 minutes. The four contestants were from culinary institutes - At-Sunrice, Shatec, ITE and the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) Singapore. All currently have internship programmes with Marina Bay Sands, ranging between three months to one year.

Said Gordon Ramsay, "I'm extremely excited to be opening Bread Street Kitchen in Singapore and even more excited to be working with Marina Bay Sands and the local culinary colleges to find our first intern. Singapore has an amazing food culture and it's important that we do everything we can to cultivate a new generation of chefs. Congratulations Han Jie and welcome to the team."

"This is truly an unforgettable moment for me. It was the most intense 10 minutes of my life and to be picked as the winner by Chef Ramsay whom I admire greatly is a dream come true. Thank you Marina Bay Sands for giving me this incredible opportunity. This is a great start to my career and I can't wait to get started on my internship," said Han Jie, winner of 'Search for the first Bread Street Kitchen Intern'.

Gordon Ramsay's Bread Street Kitchen will open at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands in the first half of 2015. Featuring a British European menu, Bread Street Kitchen will offer all-day dining with dishes from its London counterpart using fresh seasonal produce in a lively and bustling space. The restaurant will also feature a dynamic bar set in an industrial warehouse design that combines the classics with innovative cocktails.