Barrier-free meals blew our taste buds away

In Yozgat, hearing-impaired individuals competed fiercely by wearing chef’s aprons and taking their places at the counter in a cooking competition. Delicious meals made with the support of culinary department students delighted the palate.

In Yozgat, on the occasion of the Turkish Sign Language Day on June 7th, the Hearing-Impaired Cooking Competition was organized with the contributions of Yozgat Governorship, Yozgat Municipality, Yozgat Bozok University, Gastronomy Association, and Hearing-Impaired Association under the leadership of Yozgat Governorship. Five teams, one consisting of a hearing-impaired individual and the other of a culinary department student, competed in the competition held at Cumhuriyet Square. Hearing-impaired individuals wearing chef’s aprons showcased their skills by preparing delicious meals. During the intense competition, the jury members tasted the flavors brought forth by the completed dishes of the teams and gave scores.

The winner of the competition, where Arzu Özkan, the wife of Yozgat Governor Mehmet Ali Özkan, Sevda Tecimer, the wife of the Provincial Security Director Recep Tecimer, Deputy Mayor of Yozgat Talip Karslıoğlu, Vice Rector of Yozgat Bozok University Prof. Dr. Güngör Yılmaz, and the Provincial Director of Family and Social Services Arif Topal served as jury members, was the duo of hearing-impaired Rüştü Karakamış and culinary department student İsa Çakır.

At the end of the event, the winners were awarded by Arzu Özkan, the wife of Yozgat Governor Mehmet Ali Özkan.

“I participated in a cooking competition for the first time”
Hearing-impaired contestant Ömer Övünç expressed his happiness at participating in such a competition for the first time, stating, “I wanted to be the first in the Cooking Competition, I was very ambitious, and I am very excited. I am happy to be here. I participated in a cooking competition for the first time.”

“They cook very well”
Ayşenur Doğan, a student from the Culinary Arts Program of Yozgat Bozok University Vocational School of Hotel Restaurant and Catering Services, said, “Today, we are competing with our hearing-impaired friends and families. It is a very different feeling, I am very happy, the competition is fun. Today we are making sirloin steak on a bed of pepper sauce. I hope we win, we are very ambitious. We can easily communicate with the hearing-impaired, they understand us very easily and can cook. They also help me a lot, we get along well with them.”

“We are trying to change the society’s perspective on hearing-impaired individuals”
Uğur Eren Taşkesen, an instructor at the Culinary Arts Program of Yozgat Bozok University Vocational School of Hotel Restaurant and Catering Services, stated, “Within the framework of the Hearing-Impaired Week, we organized a cooking competition with the support of Yozgat Gastronomy Association, Hearing-Impaired Association, and Yozgat Municipality. We held a cooking competition with 5 teams, one consisting of a hearing-impaired individual and a culinary program student. Here, we are trying to create awareness. We are trying to change the society’s perspective on hearing-impaired individuals. In terms of their integration into society, we organized a cooking competition. As a team, our hearing-impaired and culinary department students will showcase their skills. In the competition, our culinary program students both teach them what they know and support them, they will prepare delicious meals together and present them to the jury.”