Jason Sawision of Stofa Wins Ottawa Great Kitchen Party 2025!

Canada’s Great Kitchen Party Ottawa is proud to announce the gold medalist of the Ottawa-Gatineau regional culinary competition held Monday September 22nd at Raphaël Peruvian Cuisine.

Ottawa hosted the first Great Kitchen Party among the 10 competing cities, from St. John’s, NL to Vancouver, BC.  All regional competitions end in mid-November 2025, with each region’s gold medal-winning chef qualifying for the Canadian Culinary Championship in Ottawa, January 30 and 31, 2026.

The five Chefs who competed for Ottawa’s 2025 Kitchen Party regional competition were: Simon Beaudry(Les Fougères, QC), Michael Hauschild (InHaus Cooking), Mitch Lacombe (Gitanes), Simon Laroche(Restaurant Caméline) and Jason Sawision (Stofa Restaurant). 

Deliberating over each chef’s dish was a group of seven judges, led by national Kitchen Party Head Judge Chris Johns and Ottawa Senior Judge Cory Haskins. Following the tasting of each dish and accompanying beverage, which were presented and described by competing chefs, Jason Sawision was chosen the gold medalist for his dish of seared scallops, almond pudding and green tomato and mango salsa with poblano pepper sauce and tortilla tuile.  His dish was paired with a De Simone 2021 Motivation Fumé Blanc from Four Mile Creek, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON. 

“There were some really, really exceptional dishes in Ottawa tonight, it’s as good a competition as I have ever seen in this city,” said National Head Judge Chris Johns. "I think Ottawa should be really proud of these chefs!”

The “People’s Choice Award” also went to tonight’s gold medalist, Jason Sawision.  Kate Agyemang, Senior Associate at BLG, shared “The engagement from the guests was phenomenal. The People’s Choice Award really connects the audience with the chefs, and the results reflected both skill and showmanship.”

Chef Sawision will now go on to represent Ottawa-Gatineau at the Canadian Culinary Championship being held in Ottawa January 30 and 31, 2026, where he will compete against representatives from 9 other Canadian cities. “It’s a really nice feeling, but it’s more about the team than me.  This dish included contributions from everyone and was inspired by those that work at Stofa now and those that have worked there before: it was a collaborative effort”. 

“An unforgettable evening of culinary artistry at Raphaël Peruvian Cuisine!”, said Mike Dimitriou, presenting partner from MNP, “The quality and originality of the dishes we tasted were outstanding; how privileged we are to have such amazing culinary expertise here in the nation’s capital. We wish Chef Sawision all the best as he prepares to represent Ottawa at the Canadian Culinary Championship early next year.”

Richard Pope of Connor, Clark & Lunn Private Capital, a Podium Partner of tonight’s event added: “Indeed, it was a great evening of amazing food and wine and we wish Jason all the best as he prepares to represent Ottawa at the Canadian Culinary Championship early next year. We certainly look forward to being there to see firsthand what he will be preparing for the judges.”

Chef Lizardo Becerra, last year’s gold medalist, now host and judge of this year’s competition, said: “Being on the other side of the table this year was a full-circle moment. Each chef brought their best, but Chef Sawision stood out with a dish that was both bold and beautifully executed. I know firsthand what it takes to win — and he’s got it.”

In addition to last night’s event at Raphaël Peruvian Cuisine being a culinary competition, funds were raised for national beneficiary MusiCounts.  Lisa Pasin, Senior VP of Canada’s Great Kitchen Party was thrilled to take part in the event and said: “Once again, these chefs showcased Ottawa’s reputation as a serious culinary community. With four Canadian Culinary Champions (Marc Lépine - 2-time winner from Atelier, Yannick LaSalle, formally from Les Fougères, now the Executive Chef for the Supreme Court of Canada and Briana Kim, formerly of Alice, soon to open Antheia), we know the level of excellence at our Kitchen Party events here will be exceptional – and it certainly was last night.”

As we celebrate our 19th year, we’re proud that Canada’s Great Kitchen Party has raised over $19 million to date—helping ensure Canadian youth have equitable access to sport opportunities, music education, and food security.