Over the past month, we’ve covered both the recipe submission contest and the finalist selection of the HMSHost cooking competition, which took place live at O’Hare Airport on Mar 22, 2016.

If you happened to be at Chicago O’Hare International Airport a few weeks ago, then you might have noticed the live HMSHost cooking competition going on in Terminal 2. Five contestants participating in the cook-off as part of Channel Your Inner Chef, an annual HMSHost cooking competition (in partnership with the Chicago Department of Aviation).

For the live competition, finalists were challenged to create an original recipe from ingredients revealed to them at the beginning of the event. The grab bag of ingredients also included a chef’s choice ingredient from the O’Hare Urban Garden located in Terminal 3. The tripchi airport app will be covering the ORD shortly, so stay tuned for this, and other #layovertips. The contestants were judged on cooking technique, recipe, presentation, form, showmanship, and taste.

And the winner of the HMSHost cooking competition was…

Sepi Naficy from Dallas, TX won the HMS Host cooking competition for 2016 by creating a delectable paella. The dish will be featured on the menu of an HMSHost-operated restaurant at O’Hare. Sepi’s paella featured prawns, andouille sausage, chicken, risotto, herbs, and a blend of spices. Besides being featured at a restaurant, Sepi also received round-trip airfare and a VIP experience (both prizes were for two) to the James Beard Awards Gala on May 2, 2016 at Lyric Opera of Chicago.

Some honorable mentions from other competitors included: parmesan crusted rack of lamb and a lobster and shrimp Alfredo. The entire HMS Host cooking competition event allowed airport guests to try out dishes from HMSHost-operated restaurants, and also featured live music and cooking demos from HMSHost chefs.