Cooking up a storm in Lynn

LYNN — The Phinix Lounge felt the heat Tuesday evening, as three teams got to work dicing and sauteing up a storm to see who would be crowned Iron Chef.

In an effort to promote gatherings outside of work, the Greater Lynn Chamber of Commerce (GLCC) recently created a Build Your Team (BYT) committee. GLCC Operations Manager, Christine Neals, said this is one of the first events the committee has held.

“It’s kind of a chance for businesses to get their employees out of work, get them together outside of the workspace and have fun together,” Neals said.

The GLCC partnered with the lounge owners Chef Misha and his daughter Vlada Rakhunov to hold the inaugural cooking competition.

Rakhunov started the evening by welcoming the contestants and explaining the rules.

Each team had two, 25-minute rounds, to create a dish to wow the judges. The teams were told to use every ingredient in front of them, and were allowed to ask for additional items from the kitchen if needed. The teams were also given a mystery bag, containing tomatillos, avocados, and Vienna sausage. At least one mystery ingredient had to be used in each dish.

Judging the contestants’ concoctions were Bruins National Anthem Singer Todd Angilly, and Anna Lally, social media food influencer/administrator for the Official Lynn Eats online group.

Each team chose a spokesperson to approach the judges after each round, and describe the dish being presented.

“Make it sound good, make it sound pretty, make it look good, and the judges will critique from there,” Rakhunov said.

The timer was started, and the teams got to work using the given ingredients: eggs, tomatoes, onions, peppers, oil, feta cheese, parsley, pita, smoked salmon, balsamic glaze, and an array of spices.

While each team was perfecting their dish, Chef Misha walked between contestants, offering his professional advice.

Tres Bellissimi Chefs were first to be judged. The group members included Dawn Lapusata, Lisa Lapusata, and Eileen Jonah.

Lapusata approached the judges with a frittata filled with smoked salmon, feta cheese, and veggies, topped with tomato and feta cheese. On the side, was a chickpea salad drizzled with balsamic glaze, and a slice of grilled pita bread.

“(I was) not cautious but worried about the strength of the salmon overpowering everything. But, the combo, it’s really complementing each other,” Angilly said.

Angilly added to his praise, saying he wasn’t a chickpea fan, but was eager to take another bite of the side salad.

Team Sizzlers went next. Members included Neals, Patrick Keighley, Alexis Kievning, and Louis Rubino.

Kievning presented the judges with the team’s omelet, filled with veggies, sat atop a grilled pita, and topped with smoked salmon, balsamic glaze, and feta cheese crumbles.

“The amount of time you’ve made this in, it’s incredible that you’re doing this. Tastes very nice and I do like the taste of everything in one bite. Very nicely done,” Lally said.

Both judges were very pleased with the convenience of getting every ingredient in one scrumptious bite.

Last but not least, were the youngest contestants, team Baby Spinach. Baby Spinach included high school students Lucia Celona, Gia Dichiara, and Colin Newhall.

Newhall presented the judges with their take on a breakfast flatbread, paired with a side of Vienna sausage and a decorative sweep of balsamic glaze across one side of the plate.

“We got some scrambled eggs with a bunch of goodies in there on a non-toasted flatbread,” Newhall told the judges. “It’s going to speak for itself.”

Both judges raved about the presentation and taste, and Angilly said that he liked how decorative it was while everything on the plate was still edible.

Lally said she was watching the kids cook, and noticed they were cutting up a tomatillo. She asked how it was incorporated into the dish.

“So, what we did with that was, I cut it on a cutting board, and put it back in the bag,” Newhall joked.

The second round had ingredients including tomatoes, papaya, red onions, cilantro, red pepper, green pepper, olive oil, lemon, lime, a French baguette, balsamic glaze, goat cheese, and various spices.

Baby Spinach made what they coined a “ciabatta.”

Newhall, once again, let the judges know their dish will speak for itself.

“You eat with your eyes, and what I’m seeing, this looks phenomenal you guys,” Angilly said to the team.

Tres Bellissimi Chefs then presented their tomato papaya panzanella salad atop a baguette, and topped with toasted baguette pieces to add some crunch.

“They say not to talk with your mouth full and that’s going to be really hard,” Angilly said. “Whatever you did to these tomatoes, I’m telling you right now, I want to finish this and then I want some to-go.”

The Sizzlers closed out the competition with their open-faced double bruschetta.

“So you can either stack it on top or eat it separately. There’s two different types of bruschetta,” Kievning said.

Both judges were very pleased with the best of both worlds, and enjoyed the combination of spicy and sweet.

After intense deliberation, Angilly and Lally crowned a victor, naming Lynn’s first Iron Chef.

“The dishes you made were so delicious, and in such a short amount of time. It was an honor to be asked to be a part of this,” Lally said.

In third place, taking home the bronze, was the Sizzlers. Second was given to Baby Spinach. And the winners of the competition were none other than Tres Bellissimi Chefs.

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