Participants from various establishments selected through regional competitions held at Bangalore Chennai and Kolkata came together at the Christ College, Bangalore on 7th April, 2011, for the final national selection round of the Hans Bueschkens Junior Chef Challenge. The participants arrived at Bangalore two days earlier so that they could procure the food ingredients for the competition and also familiarize themselves with the layout of the kitchen and available equipment. The contestants assembled at the kitchen at 8.30 am for a briefing by Chef Barnidharan, Corporate Executive Chef of Custom Culinary; Chef Viaya Bhaskaran Executive Chef – Food and Beverage Manager, Le Meridian, Bangalore and Chef Kasiviswanahan Muthuraman, Executive Chef, The Atria Hotel, Bangalore. The floor judges were introduced to the contestants by Chef Vijaya Bhaskaran. The competition commenced at 9.00 am. The remaining members of the jury arrived at 9.30 am.
Chef Barnidharan Executive Chef, announced the guidelines and various parameters for judging the competition. The total marks allocated for the competition was 100, based on various parameters, consisting different set of marks for each criterion, including practicality and creativity displayed while presenting the dishes, time management, portioning of dishes, as per the course, compatibility of ingredients, authenticity of flavours, texture and doneness, as well as the skills displayed through the usage of custom culinary products.