ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. (July 14, 2008) - Silvia Ledesma of Wilmington is the 2008 Hardee's Biscuit Maker Challenge Winner, Hardee's franchisee Boddie-Noell Enterprises announced today.
The other three finalists are Made From Scratch biscuit makers Elijah Hoff of Timberville, Va., Martha Sims of Waverly, Va. and Debra Barnhardt of Kannapolis.
Contestants represented Boddie-Noell’s more than 340 Hardee’s restaurants throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Kentucky. They were recognized as the best Biscuit Makers at a banquet held at the Rose Hill Conference Center in Nashville.
The competition began in January and each contestant had to advance through a local, district, and regional level of biscuit-making competition. The final winners were announced by Terry Lewis, Boddie-Noell’s vice president of operations for Hardee’s, who helped judge the final round.
“These are the top four biscuit makers out of approximately 690 biscuit makers that competed in this competition,” said Lewis. “They understand what a true Hardee’s Made From Scratch biscuit should taste and look like.”
In the biscuit competition, all biscuit makers were evaluated by the company’s leaders on knowledge and execution of Boddie-Noell Biscuit procedures, knowledge and cleanliness of biscuit equipment, personal appearance, and of course, the biscuit’s appearance, focusing on texture, temperature, size, and weight.
What’s the secret to making a delicious, appealing Hardee’s Biscuit? “Make them with a lot of love and enjoy baking,” said this year's winner Silvia Ledesma.
Biscuits are an immense part of the breakfast menu offered by Hardee’s. Last year, the Boddie-Noell Hardee’s used more than 1.5 million bags of biscuit mix, 146,000 bags of biscuit flour, and 731,000 gallons of buttermilk to prepare biscuits for their breakfast customers.
Boddie-Noell Enterprises (BNE) is a diversified family-owned business engaged primarily in restaurants and land development. BNE is the largest Hardee’s franchise operator in the United States with 343 restaurants across four states. The Company-owned restaurant brands include Texas Steakhouse & Saloon, and Café Carolina and Bakery café. The Company also operates Moe’s Southwest Grill restaurant franchises as well as the historic Rose Hill Conference Center. The company has major land-development projects completed or under way along the North Carolina coast and in Virginia. BNE employs more than 12,750 people and is headquartered in Rocky Mount, NC. For more information about the company, visit www.bneinc.com or contact Rick Rountree Communications at 919-878-1144 or rick@rickrountree.com