Obon Sushi Bar Ramen Executive Chef Anthony Dromgoole held on to his title as Iron Chef Tucson on Saturday, defeating challenger McKenzie OโLeary in the andouille sausage battle at Desert Diamond Casino.
No official score was released Saturday night, but Dromgoole said he was surprised he won.
โWe let the time get away from us this time,โ he said, adding that he expected heโd also get dinged after a hiccup in plating one of his dishes.
OโLeary, executive chef at Tanque Verde Ranch and only the second woman to compete in the contestโs 17 years, embraced her teenage daughter after the competition.
โWe did it,โ she said.
Tanque Verde Guest Ranch Executive Chef McKenzie OโLeary gets some help from sous chef Gavin Brandt as she prepares one of her four dishes during Saturdayโs andouille sausage battle.
Later, she said she was pleased with her teamโs performance but was frustrated by comments from the judges reminding her and Dromgoole about the time, saying it was a distraction.
In comments from the judgesโ table, Chef Maria Mazon, who has competed in the nationally televised Bravo reality show โTop Chef,โ sounded the alarm 35 minutes into the competition, warning the chefs that they should allow themselves 15 minutes to plate the dishes.
At the 10-minute mark, both chefs had just started plating their four dishes including OโLearyโs final one, a sweet and savory fritter topped with a warm honey and andouille sausage compote that earned the judgesโ praise.
โThis is your best dish of the night,โ gushed Mazon, chef-owner of Boca by Chef Maria Mazon.
The two other judges were Jan Osipowicz, executive chef of Desert Diamond Casino; and Tucson Foodie Editor Jackie Tran, former chef-owner of Tranโs Fats Food Truck.
Dromgooleโs andouille hash with sweet potatoes and a slow-roasted pork chop sided with a pour-over broth earned high praise from judge Osipowicz.
โThe flavor profile, the broth on the side. Itโs my favorite dish so far,โ Osipowicz said.
Dromgooleโs win earned him $500, gifts from Arizona Restaurant Supply, an engraved cutting board to display at Obon, radio commercials from Iron Chef Tucson organizer Lotus Communications ((MIXfm, KFMA, KLPX and ESPN Tucson) and a Peroni pizza oven.
OโLeary and Dromgooleโs andouille battle played out before a crowd of several hundred at Desert Diamond Casinoโs Kitchen Stadium and capped a day of cooking demonstrations and sampling.
Left: A Desert Diamond Casino culinary staffer puts out cream puff deserts during Saturdayโs Culinary Experience, which featured dozens of vendors offering samples of food and adult beverages. The casinoโs table offered sweet and savory bites, including a deconstructed tamale and crispy pan-fried pierogis drizzled with a slightly spicy tomatillo sauce.
Guests could nibble their way to a full stomach from the deconstructed tamales, Southwest-themed pierogis with spicy tomatillo sauce and handmade desserts from the casinoโs chefs to the spicy and creamy Southwest Creole chicken pasta created by Arizona Appliance & Home chef Gabriel McCarter.
Whiskey Del Bac was serving a chicken dish made with its whiskey to complement samples of its Classic, Dorado, Sentinel Rye and recently released Distillerโs Cut whiskeys. A few tables over, Eegeeโs set out cups of its icy Sonora Sunset flavor of the month.
Above: Chefs, from left, McKenzie OโLeary and Anthony Dromgoole pose for pictures after Saturdayโs 17th annual Iron Chef Tucson competition. OโLeary fell short of unseating Dromgoole.
Dromgoole is the fourth chef to win back-to-back titles. He said he hopes to return next year to try for a threepeat, something that only chef Ryan Clark has achieved. Clark, who emceed Saturdayโs competition with Charro Steak Executive Chef Gary Hickey, won back-to-back Iron Chef Tucson competitions from 2011-2013.
