AMERICAS SELECTIONS OF THE PASTRY WORLD CUP
AND BOCUSE D’OR: PASTRY TESTS REVEALED
New Orleans & Company, Sirha Food and LRA Showcase are proud to announce that the Americas selections for Bocuse d’Or and Pastry World Cup are back in New Orleans on Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th July 2026, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, following a historic and highly successful debut in New Orleans in 2024.
LOUISIANA, A CROSSROADS OF CULTURES AND TASTES
Louisiana, nourished by French, CreoleFrench, Creole and Cajun influences, offers a unique, warm and spicy gastronomic variety, which seduces far beyond its borders. Renowned for its seafood, its emblematic dishes such as okra, caramelized pecan praline, or jambalaya – a mixture of rice, meat, seafood and vegetables – and its attachment to traditions, the region radiates a recognized gastronomic mastery. With more than 3,000 restaurants, including several Michelin-starred, a vibrant culinary scene and numerous gourmet festivals, Louisiana is a destination of choice for food lovers. Its attractiveness goes beyond the plate: each year, more than 20 million visitors discover the richness of its heritage, its special energy and its unique atmosphere.
The American qualifying phases will be held at the LRA Showcase, a major professional event for the restaurant and agri-food industry in America. Held at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, the event will bring together chefs, restaurateurs, suppliers and industry experts, with 150 exhibitors, giving American cuisine greater visibility. By being part of this unmissable trade show, which welcomes 6,000 professional visitors, the continental selections underline the anchoring of the competitions in a dynamic ecosystem, conducive to innovation, exchanges and the celebration of gastronomic know-how.
THE AMERICAS SELECTIONS: A DECISIVE STEP TOWARDS THE GRAND FINALS
The Americas selection of the Pastry World Cup will bring together 8 teams from all over the American continent. Each team, made up of 3 specialists (a sugar expert, a chocolatier and an ice cream specialist), will have to demonstrate technicality, audacity and mastery to convince the jury. At the end of this demanding day, only the four best teams will qualify for the Grand Final.
On a theme of their choice, teams will have 5h30 to create 32 tasting desserts, 3 artistic pieces and a buffet:
- 10 individual pecan tarts revisited with a side dish (+3 dummies)
- 12 individual plated frozen desserts
- 12 chocolate-based sweet creations (+3 dummies)
- 1 artistic piece made of sugar
- 1 artistic piece made of chocolate
- 1 artistic piece made of sculpted water ice
- 1 buffet including the artistic pieces made of sugar, chocolate and water ice, the mock-ups of the pecan tarts and the mock-ups of the sweet chocolate creations
As in the previous cycle, one of the challenges will invite candidates to embrace a speciality that is emblematic of the host country, in tribute to its culinary heritage. For the Americas selection, pecan tart will take centre stage – a timeless classic of American pastry-making – which candidates will be asked to reinvent in their own way.
Following on from the 2025 Grand Final, the chocolate challenge is also evolving to embrace street food trends. Contestants will be required to design 12 sweet creations in finger food format, which they will finalize live in front of the jury, all staged in a set design consistent with their theme.
Regarding the Bocuse d’Or Americas, 8 teams, from 8 different countries, each composed of a chef, a commis, a coach and a jury will defend their vision of gastronomy in order to obtain a place for the Grand Final of the Bocuse d’Or 2027. Commitment, rigour and teamwork will be essential to enter the Top 5 of the ranking.
The Bocuse d’Or Americas tests will be revealed at a later date.
SPOTLIGHT ON WORLD GASTRONOMY
Through the international competitions Bocuse d’Or and Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie, Sirha Food highlights and crosses the different gastronomic and pastry cultures from all over the world. Each edition is an opportunity to discover the new generations of chefs who are committed to enhancing their culinary heritage through their passion, commitment and technicality. Since their creation – in 1987 and 1989 respectively – the Bocuse d’Or and the Pastry World Cup have continued to inspire and actively contribute to the effervescence and dynamics that drive the entire profession around the world.