After months of hosting and participating in Duelling Chefs 2011, one might expect the talented squad at Juniper Kitchen & Wine Bar to be a bit battle-weary. Not so – in fact, Chef Norm Aitken and his crew definitely brought their ‘A’ game to the final duel of the series, garnering a 4-0 victory against visiting chef Patricia Larkin of Black Cat Bistro.

One of the most impressive things about having two chefs work with the same ingredients is how distinct and varied their creations are. Starting with the same palette, they play with colour, texture, taste and form to interpret and invent dishes that many of us could never dream up at home.

As soon as the secret ingredients for this week’s Duelling Chefs competition were announced, I knew we were in for a real treat. After all, what’s not to love about lobster, duck and handmade pasta? These inspired choices promised to yield some fantastic plates, and Chefs Norm Aitken of Juniper and Jonathan Korecki of Ei8hteen and SIDEDOOR certainly did not disappoint.

Sneak a peak into a professional kitchen on a busy night and you’ll readily observe the chef’s intensity and finesse – crucial elements of a superlative dining experience. Put two chefs in the same kitchen, give them a limited amount of time to play with a prescribed set of ingredients and the intensity and finesse get ratcheted up to new levels.

As the most recent event in the Duelling Chefs 2011 series has proven, competitive cooking is as much a battle of wits as it is of culinary capability. Devising dishes that showcase a chef’s strengths while also incorporating required ingredients (of which you’ve only been given 48 hours’ notice), takes creativity and fortitude. Thus it was that the contest between Chef Ben Baird of the Urban Pear and Chef Peter Robblee of Juniper ended up as the series’ closest contest to date.

One of the greatest things about chefs’ blind tasting menus is the element of surprise. You have no idea what’s being prepared, but if the food is coming from a kitchen you admire, you have faith that every bite will be delicious. Such is the premise behind Duelling Chefs, which sees two talented craftsmen each dishing up a quartet of surprises, then leaving it to the diners to judge the results.

The third contest in Duelling Chefs 2011 was true to the definition of a duel, being "a prearranged, formal combat between two persons, usually fought to settle a point of honour." When Chef Norm Aitken of Juniper Kitchen & Wine Bar squared off against Chef Serge Rourre of the Casino du lac-Leamy’s Le Baccara, the point of honour was bragging rights. Serge and his brigade were attired in all-white while Norm and his team wore all-black, providing a subtle yet perfect metaphor for a classic Wild West showdown.

The good folks at Juniper Kitchen & Wine Bar sure know how to throw a party. The second edition of Duelling Chefs 2011 was just that – a sparkling dinner party filled with fabulous food, delicious wines and convivial conversation. Scores of delighted diners enjoyed the four courses prepared by Team Juniper, lead by Chef Peter Robblee, and the talented squad from Petit Bill’s Bistro, with Chef Glen “Skip” Sansome at the helm.