SINT MAARTEN (GREAT BAY) - Minister of Education, Culture, Youth & Sport Melissa D. Gumbs was pleased to share that Culinary Instructor Chef Renata de Weever and Junior Chef Jaenanena Joseph of the National Institute for Professional Advancement secured 3rd place in the Nevis Mango Festival Chef Competition on Sunday, 5 July 2026.
Gumbs had travelled to Nevis upon invitation of the Nevis Tourism Authority to participate in one of the island’s premier cultural events. The Nevis Mango Festival boasts several events and culinary experiences focused around the over 40 varieties of mango grown on the island. Each dish and drink sold and served over the five days of the festival incorporates mango in some way. Sunday’s cooking competition was no different.
“Chefs de Weever and Joseph were given two mystery baskets, as were all other chefs,” Gumbs explained. “The first mystery basket was based around a plant-based dish, with green banana and green soursop as the primary ingredients, and of course, mango. I was sceptical about what could be created from that but, that’s why I’m not a chef. Junior Chef Joseph drove the development of that dish, an amazing display of her talent and self-awareness as a young chef.”
The second mystery basket held a bigger challenge: conch. Participants had 30 minutes to sort out a dish that boasted a tender enough mango-infused conch offering; as if that was not challenging enough, with 20 minutes to go, another mystery ingredient was introduced, with an additional 15 minutes of time added. The new ingredient: ground coffee.
“At that point I thought, they must be crazy,” Gumbs said. “St. Maarten supporters were wondering, how do you blend coffee, mango and conch? But ultimately, I saw Chef Joseph look at it, nod and then Chef de Weever returned her nod and I knew they had it.”
This year’s Chef Competition featured celebrity judge Chef Eric Adjepong. Chef Adjepong was a Top Chef Season 16 finalist and has appeared on numerous cooking shows across various networks, and is also a published author. With three other judges, after two rounds of competition, St. Maarten placed third, with Anguilla at 2nd place and Nevis rounding it off as 1st place winners.
Gumbs applauded both chefs for their adaptability, creativity and professionalism throughout the competition, expressing her gratefulness at being able to travel alongside them to Mango Festival.
“Growth is about going up against others with more experience, more time in the game,” she stated. “This type of regional connection and collaboration has always been important to me, as I believe we have some of the greatest creative culinary minds in the world, circulating right here in the Caribbean. I’m incredibly proud of this first showing at Nevis Mango Festival, and I look forward to future participation of St. Maarten’s culinary expertise, as well as other neighbouring islands.”
