About an hour into the cooking, the six judges made their first rounds, evaluating the chefs on their techniques, organization and efficiency. One of those judges, Brig. Gen. Scott Harrison of the Utah Air National Guard, said he liked what he saw at the Navy team's station.

"These guys are really good," Harrison said. "They're working carefully, cleanly and precisely...they're not panicky and they're not in a hurry."

Harrison admitted he had a prejudice for military cooks, having had "35 years of good meals coming from guys just like these."

Navy chefs Perry and McNulty put together a menu that included a complete breakfast, lunch and dinner for the judges, and Perry said they tackled the challenge "just like we do at work every day." Their offerings included a steak and eggs benedict with bernaise sauce (breakfast,) Cajun beef, barbecue pork and spicy shrimp with cheddar grits (lunch) and truffled, grill skirt steak served with a garlic mash potato martini.They employed a unique cooking method to poach eggs for their benedict that involved steaming the eggs in a small, sealed plastic bag that gave them a perfect, round shape when cooked. The ovum spheres where part of an impressive and flashy presentation for the judges.

Presentations at each of the other four branches' serving tables were, visually speaking, equally impressive. Creative plating techniques showed off frenched lamb chops, plump seared scallops, thick rounds of beef tenderloin, lightly breaded fish fillets and medleys of vegetables and accompaniments that looked almost too good to eat, though the judges did not let that stop them.

After sampling the contestants' offerings, judges retreated to privately confer and compare notes. They returned, after over a half-hour of deliberation, to award the crown to Army chefs Rene Marquis and David Turcotte. Their winning array of cuisine included beef carpaccio with dijon sauce; sauted sweetbreads with a melange of mushrooms and spinach; cream of potato soup infused with tomatoes; seared scallops with baby greens and raspberry vinaigrette; lime sorbet; seared duck breast with a pan jus and beet salad; grilled skirt steak with roasted root vegetables, creamy risotto and asparagus spears and, for dessert, macerated fruit with a chocolate truffle and creme brulee.

After receiving the award, Marquis said he knew and had worked with many of his competitors and said they were all fantastic chefs ... and was proud to win the trophy for the Army.

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E-mail: araymond@desnews.com