Muscle Shoals Barbecuer Finishes 8th in $100,000 “Final Table” Cooking Challenge

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Posted Aug 31, 2020

Muscle Shoals Barbecuer Finishes 8th in $100,000 “Final Table” Cooking Challenge

World Burger Champion Morgan Cheek is returning home as one of the best cooks in the world after competing in Food Sport’s largest event. The “Final Table: Indy” culinary throwdown was held in Indianapolis in August and filmed for a special one-hour TV show that will be released in October on the Cooking Channel.

The event was hosted by the World Food Championships (WFC), Visit Indy, Ivy Tech Culinary Center and Culinary Crossroads. It featured ten Category Champions who had earned a seat during WFC’s Main Event last fall in Dallas. Cheek completed the tournament with an 8th place finish.

In the “Final Table: Indy” first round, Cheek and the other champions were tasked with making a Pork and Parisian Gnocchi dish using Red Gold Tomatoes and pork cuts sourced from the National Pork Board.

Morgan and his team, Casey and Judy Jones, completed Challenge One on time and presented it to a panel of local pork experts including Chef James Murray from the National Pork Board. The judging panel used WFC’s propriety judging system, the E.A.T.™ Methodology (which stands for Execution, Appearance and Taste) to score each dish.

The Jones duo came in second place at WFC’s Main Event, leading Cheek to ask them to be his Final Table sous chefs. The Jones competition team name, “Miracle In The Kitchen,” came after Casey Jones himself was a survivor of the Miracle of the Hudson River plane crash. Some might say having the Jones team was a lifesaver.

His Challenge One dish titled “Reimagined Indiana Pork Sandwich” scored a 90.75 (out of 100) after the panel of judges’ scores were combined and formulated on key weightings. Although he did not advance to the next round, Cheek won an additional $750 on top of his $10,000 category win at WFC’s 2019 Main Event.

Only five of the Category Champions continued on to Challenge Two, which involved creating a delicate duck dish designed by Chef Greg Hardesty and using Maple Leaf Farms’ product. From there, three finalists were awarded a spot in the last challenge, which involved a creative interpretation of the iconic Indiana Sugar Cream Pie.

WFC kept fans updated on results throughout the weekend event, up until the final challenge in which all parties involved were required to sign non-disclosure agreements. “The Final Table: Indy” national TV show will air on the Cooking Channel on October 3, 2020. At that time, the new World Food Champion will be revealed during the show’s final sequence.

Until then, stay up-to-date on all culinary competition news, by following the World Food Championships on Twitter (@WorldFoodChamp), Facebook and Instagram (@WorldFoodChampionships).

About World Food Championships

The World Food Championships (WFC) is the highest stakes food competition in the world. This multi-day, live event culinary competition showcases some of the world's best cooks who compete for food, fame and fortune in 10 categories (Bacon, Barbecue, Burger, Chef, Dessert, Recipe, Sandwich, Seafood, Soup and Steak). In 2019, more than 450 culinary teams from 11 countries and 42 American states competed in WFC’s Main Event. In August, the 10 Category Champs faced-off in the $100,000 challenge that determined a new World Food Champion at The Final Table: Indianapolis. The 8th Annual World Food Champion will be revealed Oct. 3rd on the Cooking Channel.

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Muscle Shoals Barbecuer Finishes 8th in $100,000 “Final Table” Cooking Challenge

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