Southern Arizona's Chef of the Year is ....

Wilson and eight other chefs competed Saturday and Sunday at La Posada Resort in Green Valley. Jason Jonilonis, executive chef at Sol Casinos, was awarded second place, while Jay Ganzhorn, executive chef at Northwest Hospital and Will Saksek, sous chef at La Posada, tied for third place.

 Christopher Johnson of JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa, won the pastry chef competition, with second place going to Loews Ventana Canyon's Krista Owens.

The annual competition, which had been held Pima Community College's Desert Vista Campus (home to Pima's Culinary Arts Program) until this year, is run by the Chefs Association of Southern Arizona, a chapter of the American Culinary Federation.

Loews Ventana Canyon's Ventana Room, the only Tucson recipient of the AAA's Five-Diamond rating (and one of just two in the state), is led by French Master Chef Marc Erhler, who is not only executive chef at Ventana Canyon but also for all of Loews' resorts.

Ehrler's chefs have done well in the competition. In addition to the first and second place finishes by Wilson and Owens this year, Ventana Canyon banquet chef Ken Harvey was second to Arizona Inn's Odell Baskerville in last year's overall competition.