Australia's Best of the Best Pizza Maker

After more than 2,500 entries from around Australia, 12 cook offs, 5 state finals in 2 different categories we can announce that the
2008 Dairy Farmers Best of the Best Pizza Maker is... Kris Bailey from The Pantry in Brighton,Victoria.

Kris’ overall win came from showcasing consistency across the 4 categories of the national final of the Dairy Farmers Best of the Best Pizza Challenge including, Best Use of Cheese, Best Use of Smallgoods, Best Seafood and the Mystery Box. The Mystery Box final category was a new addition designed to test the competitors’ ability to develop a pizza on the spot using a choice of ingredients they were given only 2 hours before the competition started. He didn’t sweep the entire pool though.There was a range of winners in each of the categories including:

Traditional
Best Use of Cheese: David Sweeney – Narangba Valley Tavern, Narangba Qld
Best Use of Smallgoods: Riccardo Moretti – La Piazza, Bankstown, NSW
Best Seafood:Amy Millar – Little Caesar’s, Mundaring WA
Best Mystery Box:Angelo Sanfilippo – The Boathouse, Moonee Ponds,Vic

Other finalists in the 2 day national final held in Melbourne included:

Traditional
Mel Anastasio – Bocelli Caffe Restaurante, Adelaide SA
Amy Millar – Little Caesar’s, Mundaring WA
David Sweeney – Narangba Valley Tavern, Narangba Qld
Angelo Sanfilippo – The Boathouse, Moonee Ponds,Vic
Riccardo Moretti – La Piazza, Bankstown, NSW

Gourmet
Chris Symons - Vitto Caffe Ristorante, Pacific Paradise, Qld
Jacinta Cannataci - Hugo’s Bar Pizza, Kings Cross, NSW
Brendan Spencer – K.I.S.S. Pizza, Marmion,WA
Damon De Ruiter – Angaston Roaring 40’s Cafe,Angaston, SA

If you would like to explore some of the recipes from the Best of the Best Contest, visit their website at www.bestofthebest.com.au.