Winners of Young Chef Young Waiter announced at awards dinner
October 21, 2010
Mark Stinchcombe, Brasserie junior sous chef from Lucknam Park, Colerne, Wiltshire and Ben Dantzic, head waiter at Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, Gleneagles have been named Young Chef Young Waiter 2010.
The pair were declared the winners of the annual Young Chef Young Waiter competition at an awards ceremony held at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower hotel, London, last night after one of the most hotly contested finals in the history of the competition, held at Westminster Kingsway College, London.
Young Chef runners up were:
Second : Lahiru Jayasekara, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, Oxford
Third: Tom Parker, Northcote, Langho, Lancs
Young Waiter runners-up were:
Second: Julien Gardin, The Fat Duck, Bray
Third: Thomas Aragones, The Fat Duck, Bray
During the national finals, competitors had to prepare and serve a meal for four people from a mystery basket of ingredients that included partridge, turbot, clam, muscovado sugar and Laurent-Perrier Champagne.
Chefs were judged on their choice of dishes, balance of menu, their cooking skills and timing while waiters were judged on their skills in serving the meal, customer contact skills and wine service skills.
Chairman of the chef judges was Bruce Poole (Chez Bruce), with eight other judges, including Angela Hartnett (Murano), Phil Howard (The Square), Gary Jones (Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons), Brett Graham (The Ledbury) and Clare Smyth (Gordon Ramsay).
Chairman of the waiter judges was Stephen Mannock (National Skills Academy for Hospitality) with eight others including Simon Girling (The Ritz), Simon King (The Fat Duck) and Jean-Claude Breton (Gordon Ramsay).
The winners received a selection of prizes including £1,000 each from the Savoy Educational Trust plus a three-day culinary course sponsored by S.Pellegrino at the University of Alma, Parma, Italy and a three-day visit to Luxembourg courtesy of Villeroy & Boch.
The competition, which is now in its 26th year and organised by The Restaurant Association, is a national competition for youngsters aged 25 years and under.
Headline sponsor for the competition for the second year running was von Essen hotels, with the Savoy Educational Trust and American Express as founding sponsors.
New sponsors this year are Nestlé Professional, the National Skills Academy for Hospitality and Villeroy & Boch. Other sponsors are HSBC Merchant Services, Laurent-Perrier, Matthew Clark, S.Pellegrino, Sodexo and Wild Harvest.
Among the prizes was a three-day study visit to Champagne for all the national finalists, courtesy of Laurent-Perrier, which covered all aspects of the production and service of Champagne.
Bob Walton, President of The Restaurant Association, said that the sponsorship of von Essen hotels and the continuing long-standing support of the founder sponsors, the Savoy Educational Trust and American Express, as well as other key supporters, highlighted the importance of the competition in the industry:
“The standard this year was higher than ever. I know we say that every year, but this year it was absolutely true. The industry should be proud of these youngsters. They are extremely talented. The industry will be safe in their hands.”
Young Chef finalists (in alpha order) were:
Tommy Fairhall (Galvin at Windows Restaurant, London Hilton on Park Lane)
Luke Fouracre (House of Commons)
Lahiru Jayasekara (Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, Oxford)
Chris Kenny (Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, Oxford).
Ryan Murphy (Turnberry Hotel, Ayrshire)
Tom Parker (Northcote, Langho)
Mark Stinchcombe (Lucknam Park, Wiltshire)
Michael Tweedie (Lucknam Park, Wiltshire)
Young Waiter finalists were:
Thomas Aragones (The Fat Duck, Bray)
Ben Dantzic (Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, Gleneagles)
Julien Gardin (The Fat Duck, Bray)
Jenny Mackiewicz (Balmoral Bar, Edinburgh)
Max Smith (Northcote, Langho)
Alberto Tommasi (The Waterside Inn, Bray).
Sam Ward (The Ritz, London)
Adam Willis (Box Tree, Ilkley)
Young Chef Young Waiter finalists celebrate after receiving their awards:
Left to right: Young Waiters: Thomas Aragones, The Fat Duck Bray (3rd);Julien Gardin, The Fat Duck, Bray (2nd), Ben Dantzic, Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, Gleneagles (winner) Bob Walton, President, The Restaurant Association. Young Chefs: Tom Parker, Northcote, Langho (3rd); Lahiru Jayasekara (Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, Oxford (2nd); Mark Stinchcombe, Lucknam Park, Wiltshire; (winner)
