Prince Albert congratulates winners of inaugural Young Chef Young Waiter Monaco competition

13/10/2023

The inaugural Young Chef Young Waiter (YCYW) Monaco competition has been held at the Lycée Rainier III, where eight finalists battled it out to win Young Chef, Young Waiter and Young Mixologist of the year awards.

Open to all those aged 28 years and younger working in the hospitality sector in the Principality of Monaco, the finalists were selected from an online application process.

The winners will now go on to compete against the winners from eight other countries, at the World Young Chef Young Waiter competition, that will be hosted by the Lycée Rainier III, on 23rd and 24th November 2023.

As guest of honour on 5^th October at the Lycée Rainier III, Prince Albert II congratulated each winner, as Anne-Marie Boisbouvier, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of the Principality of Monaco to UNESCO, announced the winning chef, waiter and mixologist.

*Young Chef Young Waiter Competition Monaco, photo credit: Frederick Duchesne for YCYW*

And the winners are…

The winning Chef Jordan Callen of Trinity Monaco and winning waiter Daryl Danican will compete as the Young Chef, Young Waiter Monaco team at the world final, with Luigi Giannini from Coya Monaco competing in the World Mixologist competition sponsored by NEFT Vodka.

A stellar line up of judges, including many of Monaco’s culinary and hospitality heroes, spent some hours deciding on the final winners.

The chef judging panel, led by Christian Garcia, president of the Club des Chefs des Chefs, included Laurent Piolti, sous chef at the Hôtel Hermitage, Jean-Laurent Basile, chef at l’Hirondelle; Luc Gamel, sous chef at the Hôtel Hermitage, and Joël Garault, executive chef at the Hôtel Hermitage.

“The standard of finalists, a renowned judging panel and a perfect location, all contributed to this great first YCYW Monaco competition,” said Robert Lee Mulcahy – President YCYW Monaco.

*Left to right: Chef Jean-Laurnt Basile, Chef Laurent Pialti, Chef Joël Garault, Christian Garcia, and Chef Luc Gamel. Photo credit: Frederick Duchesne*

The hospitality judges included El Kadri Salah, restaurant eirecteur at Em Sherif, Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Anne-Sophie Kordzinski, restaurant manager at Louis XV-Alain Ducasse Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, and Dominique Milardi, head sommelier at Méridien Beach Plaza Monte-Carlo and President of l’Association des sommeliers de Monaco.

Mixology judges included Paglia Guillaume, head barman at Trinity Monte-Carlo, and Philip Culazzo, owner of Distillerie de Monaco.

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Main photo: Prince Albert with Daryl Danican, Luigi Giannini, Anne-Marie Boisbouvier and Jordan Callen. Credit: Frederick Duchesne for YCYW

Basketball: Roca Team ups budget for this season to a record-breaking €27.5 million

by: Elsa Carpenter

13/10/2023

Almost half of the massive €27.5 million budget is set to go towards the salaries of AS Monaco Basket’s top level players, which include summer signing Kemba Walker, a four-time NBA all-star.

The Roca Team were top of the French league for two reasons last season: the team were crowned Champions of France after an epic win over Boulogne-Levallois in the final in June and also recorded the highest budget of all sides in the Betclic Elite.

This season, however, that big budget is even bigger, having been given a 33% boost, according to statistics published this week by the Ligue Nationale de Basket.

Now set at a reported €27.5 million, it is a record-breaking budget for Monaco’s glory side.

According to media reports, around 48% of that money will go towards paying the salaries of the team’s players. Equating to some €13 million, this represents a 21% increase on last season’s payouts and also sets a record for the biggest sum paid to players in the French league.

But AS Monaco isn’t the only side to increase its budget for this season. Rivals ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne have also upped theirs by 33% to €21 million while the average across the league is a boost of 9%.

Back in Monaco, the extra funding available this season demonstrates a shared will and desire amongst those managing the club to take the next step and solidify the Roca Team’s dominance in the French league as well as on the European circuit.

2022/23 was historic for the club, which reached the Final Four of the EuroLeague alongside winning the Betclic Elite for the first time, and 2023/24 seems to have started with just as much promise.

Read related:

Basketball: When and where to catch the Roca Team in action this October

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Photo credit: AS Monaco Basket

Monaco’s Foire Attractions will soon be returning to Port Hercule

by: Stephanie Horsman

13/10/2023

Perfectly timed with the start of the school holidays, the Foire Attractions will be back in Monaco’s Port Hercule for a whole month beginning Friday 20th October.

Looking for something fun and exciting to do with the kids during the vacances de Toussaint? The annual Foire Attractions on the port is just the ticket.

Some old favourites will be back at the funfair this autumn, including thrill rides Extazy and Mega Dancer, alongside some tamer options like Space Combat and Jumping Frog.

There will also be plenty of new attractions this year too, such as King Tower, a ride that reaches 130kmph, rises 45 metres into the air and rotates dizzyingly around an axis, and the Jump Zone trampoline course, an attraction requiring a certain dexterity.

Additionally, this year will mark the big return of Play Ball, the basketball-shaped ride that has been so popular in the past.

The rides and games will be complemented by a fantastic selection of food options, including waffles, Hungarian brioche and pancakes along with savoury delicacies like socca, burgers and hot dogs.

The annual autumn attraction will be open to the public every day from 11am till 11pm until Sunday 19th November, with special late-night openings on Fridays and Saturdays as well as bank holidays, when the funfair will be open until midnight. On Saturday 18th November, the day before Monaco’s official National Day, the park will remain open until 1am.

Safety and sustainability

Security and safety are always important to the organisers, so be prepared for bag checks at the access points, as well as a head count to ensure over-crowding is not an issue. If the fair reaches a saturation point, entry will be temporarily suspended until it is deemed safe to allow people in once again.

As in years past, the town hall, which runs the funfair, will be installing cameras around the site so that visitors can check out in advance how busy it is.

Finally, recycling and sorting stations will be posted around the venue to ensure this event remains as environmentally friendly as possible.

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Photo by Monaco Life

France clamps down on animal cruelty with new public reporting system

by: Stephanie Horsman

13/10/2023

Upwards of 12,000 animal cruelty offences were recorded last year in France, but many more go unreported. Now the French government wants to make it easier for witnesses to share what they’ve seen with a new and dedicated website.

Animal protection in France is nothing new. The country imposed its first laws on the matter in 1850, but they were limited at the time to public displays. By 1959, France had expanded these laws to include protections for any domestic or captive animal.

Despite this, the French national police and gendarmerie recorded upwards of 12,000 offenses targeting pets or farm animals in 2021, with 42% of the acts involving serious abuse and acts of cruelty. These malicious incidents have increased by 30% since 2016.

NEW WEBSITE

To make the job of the authorities easier, and to catch more people who engage in this crime, the Ministry of the Interior has set up a website that allows people to report “sudden acts of violence or prolonged deprivation of care to which an animal may be the victim”.

People who use the website will be asked certain set questions, notably on the condition of the animal, as well as to describe in detail the specifics around the suspected abuse. If there is imminent danger to the animal, the public is asked to call 17 directly and immediately to report it to police.

WHAT IS ABUSE?

Some of the acts that constitute ill-treatment or abuse include depriving an animal of food or water, not providing care to a sick or wounded animal, keeping an animal in an unsafe environment, and using restraining devices such as electric or barbed fencing or shock devices that inflict pain unless absolutely necessary.

Anyone convicted of mistreatment faces fines ranging from €750 to €45,000. The most serious infractions, such as committing cruel acts in front of minors or willful abandonment that will lead to certain death, can involve a three-year jail sentence.

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Photo source: Vijesh Datt, Unsplash

Day: 13 October 2023