Vancouver chefs show off their best curry dishes in annual Curry Cup competition​on March 26, 2025 at 8:43 pm

On Monday, diners took shelter from the relentless March rain inside Vancouver Heritage Hall. The spicy aroma of curry filled the main street landmark as local chefs served 10 different dishes in the annual Curry Cup.

Diners roamed from station to station, sampling a curry poutine from Slim’s BBQ, paneer truffles in panch phoron (five-spice blend) curry from Lila, and a beetroot kofta curry from Desi Indian Lounge, among others. Revelry Imports poured wine, while Main Street Brewing took care of beer needs and Edna’s served mocktails. PICA, the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts, provided desserts, including Yuzu and Passionfruit Marshmallows, and Profiteroles with Saffron Cream & Cardamom Carmel.

The annual event is sponsored by Chefs’ Table Society of British Columbia. Run by and for culinary professionals, the organization was created in 2004 to support local chefs and promote food sustainability.

Now, says executive director Shawna Gardham, “the focus has changed to not just sustainability of food, but of our industry.”

Among its initiatives, Chefs’ Table has co-founded CooksCamp, a two-day industry only event to create better community and practices, and Apprentice of the Year for rising talent.
“Our long-term goal is a culinary centre, a home to celebrate our industry, our culture, and the heritage of our food,” Gardham said.

Chefs’ Table also produces a podcast called Mise-en-Place. The show featuring interviews with prominent and up-and-coming local chefs and restaurateurs like John Bishop, Sean Heather and Kate Siegel, exec pastry chef at the Fairmont Pacific Rim. Its signature event is the Spot Prawn Festival, which takes place May 26. Tickets are on sale now at spotprawnfestival.com.

“When we started the festival, it was completely chef-driven,” Gardham said. “They weren’t on chefs’ menus, and most were being shipped overseas. We’ve made them quite the coveted little darlings.”

Now in its 11th year, the Curry Cup features different restaurants each time, with the previous year’s winner returning to judge the following year.

“It all started because every server restaurant has a family meal or before-service type of thing, and often it’s the sous-chefs who make something for everyone and they’re using whatever is in the kitchen. And often in a family meal, you have a curry. It was a way to showcase those.”

At the 2025 Curry Cup, things wrapped up at 9, following two-and-half-hours of multiple samplings. The judges selected Dixiecooks’ Sri Lankan Goat Curry as top prize.

Dilaxan Sunthareswaran, a.k.a. Dixie, was visibly excited at winning the trophy. The 28-year-old, who moved to Canada with his parents from Sri Lanka when he was six, is a self-taught private chef. He learned his craft from watching his parents and YouTube videos.