Savour The Southeast has some new attractions on an already-tasty menu this year, including a chef showdown, and two of the chefs involved have some pretty special plans for the event. 

Ryan Katchuk, an executive sous chef of Doubletree by Hilton-Regina and executive chef at Casino Regina with over 20 years experience as a chef, will be among the culinary masters on hand. David Vinoya, also a Doubletree by Hilton executive sous chef who frequently competes with Canada's best is also one of the chefs lined up for the event. They're both looking forward to bringing their talents to Savour The Southeast. 

"We've done many events like this in Regina," Katchuk said, "and we always like to have fun and show some different foods." He also said it was Curtis Hack of the ECS who reached out to him.

David Vinoya has been cooking for 15 years now and has been in 16 competitions in that time, beginning in his high school years. He's coming to Savour The Southeast fresh off another competition. 

"One of the guys messaged me on Facebook," he recounts, "and at that time I was actually in a competition in Kelowna for the Canadian Culinary Championship. I wasn't able to reply back as soon as possible. I got back to them a month after the competition. I asked him if it was still possible to join because it's a fundraising event and I love doing that stuff, helping others in my little way. They said it was still ok, which was awesome."

Both chefs have something special prepared for the contest, featuring a taste of Saskatchewan with their own twist.

"I'll definitely showcase some Saskatchewan stuff," said Vinoya. "I'm not going to go overboard because I want people to enjoy the flavour of Saskatchewan." 

As for Katchuk, he had something a little more specific planned. 

"We're going a little outside of the box," he said. "We're doing a quesadilla carnitas de pato, which is a duck quesadilla with a chipotle cherry salsa. We wanted to stick with some stuff that was local themed, using sour cherries and using duck as a protein."

"I'm just hoping to come there, have some fun and talk to as many people as I can about food and beverages," he added. "I hear it's a fun event and it's a sellout every year."

All proceeds from Savour The Southeast go to Envision Counseling and Support Service.