Dressed in a short-sleeved chef’s shirt and black-and-white checkered chef pants, Yadiska van Putten puts a black nitrile glove on each hand as she begins her morning shift as a Level 2 prep and station cook in the kitchen of Gallery Restaurant at the Ballantyne Hotel in Charlotte, N.C. The hood vent and convection oven rumble behind her as she chops strawberries for the lunchtime salads.
The Triad scored well Aug. 8 at the Pavilion at Angus Barn in Raleigh, taking two of the three top honors at the statewide Chef Showdown organized by the N.C.