Meeting planners and travel professionals: Are you interested in winning a trip to Vegas with fine dining and limo transportation? Or a chance to win an all-expense-paid trip to the South Beach Wine & Food Festival in Miami next February?

In its second consecutive year, the MGM Resorts International Recipe Showdown will be held in 16 cities across the U.S. and Canada.

Last year the showdown was a success with meeting planners in 12 cities dishing up best-kept secret recipes for a chance to win a trip to Las Vegas, prepare their dishes in front of celebrity chef judges including award-winning chef Julian Serrano, and enjoy a special private performance by The Mirage headliner Terry Fator. Only one could prevail as the first-ever winner of this competition and that honor went to Melissa Moskal, creative manager at Prime Strategies in Vancouver, Canada, who wowed the judges with Melissa’s Marvelous Moussaka.

Now is the time to start sifting through those kitchen drawers for that favorite family recipe. Winners of each city showdown will be whisked away to Las Vegas in October for the national finals and compete for the honor, prizes and bragging rights of being the 2015 MGM Resorts International Recipe Showdown winner! The 16 finalists will prepare their dishes in front of a live audience cheering on their picks.

The city showdowns begin in June and go through September where one winner will emerge from each location.

Prizes include fabulous Vegas vacations with fine dining options and limo transportation.

For those who think they have what it takes and can stand the heat to go head-to-head with fellow meeting planners and travel professionals, they can submit their favorite family recipe by clicking here.

  • Showdown cities:
  • Washington D.C. – June 2
  • Vancouver, BC – June 9
  • Minneapolis – June 17
  • Toronto – June 23
  • Seattle – July 9
  • Salt Lake City – August 12
  • Indianapolis – August 12
  • Philadelphia – August 13
  • Boston – August 18
  • New York City – August 20
  • Denver – August 20
  • Los Angeles – August 20
  • Dallas – August 25
  • Atlanta – August 27
  • San Francisco – September 10
  • Chicago– September 17

FINALS – Las Vegas – October 29

Contest details:
Recipes can be any type of dish from appetizer, entrée to dessert served for breakfast, lunch, dinner or late-night.

City competitions will be judged by fellow meeting and travel professionals.

The top three finalists from each city will have their recipes featured in a recipe book by meeting and travel professionals for meeting and travel professionals
Click here for the 2014 MGM Resorts International Recipe Showdown Cookbook featuring the top recipes from last year’s competition.

First place finalist in each city will be flown to Las Vegas for the national finals on October 29 to compete in a 16-person Cook-Off. Transportation and lodging will be provided by MGM Resorts International.

Judges for the finals will be celebrity chefs from MGM Resorts International restaurants.

Finals
1st Place – All-expense-paid trip to the South Beach Wine & Food Festival in Miami; February 25 – 28, 2016
2nd Place – Three-night stay at an MGM Resorts destination in Las Vegas, airport limo transfer, dinner each night
3rd Place – Two-night stay at an MGM Resorts destination in Las Vegas, airport limo transfer, dinner each night