The Ary Toukley was the big winner at the 2024 Your Local Club Perfect Plate Awards announced on July 2, bringing home three major gongs.
Seven clubs on the Central Coast competed in Perfect Plate this year, with The Ary Toukley named the overall winner in the region for its Queensland king prawn ravioli, closely followed by Breakers Country Club for its 3B pie (beef braised in beer with smoky bacon pieces topped with fluffy puff pastry).
Halekulani Bowling Club came third in the Central Coast region for its snapper symphony (grilled and beer battered snapper atop a pea puree and fondant potato).
The Ary Toukley then went on to take out the medium club category statewide for the prawn ravioli and completed the trifecta by winning the new Best Dessert category for its Belgium chocolate fondant with creme anglaise, vanilla ice cream and vanilla fairy floss.
The four statewide winners and 13 regional winners were announced at Bankstown Sports Club on Tuesday, July 2.
The competition’s ambassadors, celebrity chefs Matt Moran and Courtney Roulston, visited 55 participating clubs to meet the competing chefs and taste their creations.
“I tried everything (and) was actually fortunate enough to sample The Ary Toukley’s winning chocolate fondant — it was simply outstanding,” Moran said.
“Clubs took the Perfect Plate competition to a whole new level this year, I was so impressed with what they plated up.
“As someone who started their career in a Western Sydney club, it was refreshing to see so many young, enthusiastic chefs honing their craft in their local club and pushing themselves to get creative.”
Roulston said the competition was fierce this year.
“Not only were more clubs competing this year, but we are in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis, so clubs had to be innovative when it came to cooking dishes that diners would love and be happy to purchase,” she said.
ClubsNSW CEO Rebecca Riant said Perfect Plate, now in its fourth year, was an opportunity to shine the spotlight on club dining and the dedicated chefs who worked in the industry.
“These days you can walk into a club for a special occasion and enjoy a fresh, creative meal prepared by a hatted chef, or you can order a classic, comforting dish that evokes childhood memories,” she said.
“And chances are you can enjoy some live entertainment while you’re at it, too.”
Diners could only vote for each Perfect Plate dish once, but they were encouraged to taste as many competition dishes at as many NSW clubs as possible to boost their chances of winning a prize.
A $100 dining voucher was given away every day of the competition, while the two diners who voted for the most Perfect Plate dishes will each win a ‘foodie getaway’ for two valued at $3,500.
They will be announced later this month.
To find out more about the Your Local Club Perfect Plate Awards visit perfectplate.com.au