By Kenicia Francis
The top three finalists for the Taste of Wadadli Pastry Chef Competition are set to compete against each other on Saturday, May 11.
Tameka Hamiliton, from the Blue Waters Resort and Spa, Britanaya Mclaren from the Hermitage Bay Hotel, and Viva Ingram from Jumby Bay Island Resort will be competing to secure a seat on the team representing Antigua and Barbuda at The Taste of the Caribbean culinary competition, and will be hailed as the country’s best pastry chef.
Hamilton told Observer she was very honored and grateful to be selected as a finalist,“I am just thankful. I can’t say anything else but that. I’m just really grateful for the whole process. I even said if I didn’t win it’s okay because I was just really grateful and thankful for the whole process. It was my first competition, so I didn’t know what to expect. Everything was new to me, but I really enjoyed it all.”
She also expressed gratitude to God, her parents and her boss for guiding her along the way.
For the next competition she stated, “I expect to wow the judges like I did last time. I want to play on different textures and flavors and of course stick within the realm of the local flavors, and just hope to be on top again.”
“I really love my country. It’s wonderful to see that we are now pushing the country to a different level where other people are gonna open their eyes to what we can do, what we have to offer. We, by no means, fall short. So I would be honored to represent my country and my hotel of course,”she continued.
Hamilton got started in the industry having grown up as the last of five girls, helping her mom cook to feed the household.
She told Observer, “My mom used to bake a lot because it was five of us, all girls and I’m the last. Things were tough. She would bake a lot to make ends meet. She wasn’t able to always afford the snacks for all of us having all those mouths to feed. So, she would do a lot of local desserts like bread pudding, sweet potato pudding, raw cake, pumpkin and banana fritters.”
“I would just always be in the kitchen with her. She not only taught me how to bake, she taught me how to cook on a budget; how to make the pot really taste good with not having much. I just grew with that and developed that more,” she continued.
Mclaren, told Observer she got started in the industry because she’s always had a sweet tooth and after the pandemic of 2020, she spontaneously applied to Hermitage.
“It was during an interview that I confessed I had no professional experience in a kitchen, but that my mind is open, I’m willing to learn, and I’ll always put my best foot forward. With that they decided to take a chance on me, and I’ve been there ever since.”
When asked about her preparation for Saturday, Mclaren said, “I am strategizing. I am going over everything that I know, thinking about all the best options, then narrowing them down. Whichever one I decide to do, I’m going to be practicing day and night, putting in that overtime to get it done.”
“I only hope to get to showcase what I have to offer. I’m not doing this just for me. I’m doing this for everyone who believed in me and took the chance when I didn’t know anything and was willing to help and teach me,”she continued.
She said she would love to be on the national team as it would be an honor to represent the country and to be selected as a finalist, considering she’s never been enrolled in culinary school.
“It just goes to show that all my hard work is being paid off. I find myself always trying to go above and beyond to prove myself in this field. I’m just doing my best honestly,” she said.
Ingram described feeling excited and joyful at being picked as a finalist, “It put such a smile on my face and joy in my heart. I felt really awesome and I give thanks to god.”
She started out as a cook, then was assigned to assist with the pastry department as they needed help.
She stated,“Even though I wasn’t really knowledgeable in pastry, I was very intrigued and excited about the art and the beauty of what I saw. So immediately I got myself enrolled at Antigua Barbuda Hospitality Training Institute (ABHTI) in a one year course of basic cookery and started to develop myself in pastry. I was so passionate and self motivated and task driven that I just started to grow and excel in pastry. From that day I have been in pastry until now.”
With regards to the next competition, Ingram told Observer, “I intend on putting more planning in it, also rising up from where I believe I fell short in the previous competition. I hope for the best for all of the contestants, knowing that we are all winners. I pray to emerge as one of the ambassadors that will represent Antigua and Barbuda, my resort and all of my friends and family.”
“I would like to showcase to the world that in Antigua and Barbuda, we’re not only about the sun, 365 beaches, or pineapple and all those things. But that Antigua possesses a lot of exquisite talent and we are very creative. Anywhere we go we shine,”she continued.