Chef v Chef competition 2010 - Winners announced
Gold Over 23’s
The decision to return to Bath from Japan to complete her level three Cookery examination has paid off for City of Bath College sudent Maiko Fukazu, when she scooped the coveted top prize in the 0ver-23 section of this year’s Bath Chef v Chef competition.
Maiko is quite a star, as this is not the first year she has been successful. In 2007 at the age of 22 she won Gold in the Under-23 section, which gave her the opportunity to experience a work placement in the kitchen of the world famous Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons Restaurant.
Maiko said “It was much harder this year, it was very competitive and I had to work fast to complete the dishes. I was really surprised to hear I had won as there were some very accomplished Chefs in the category. I will be studying at the College until May and then I’m really hoping I can stay to live and work in Bath”.
Gold Under 23’s
The winner of the Under 23’s Gold award was 19-year-old Niall Keating, whose desire to be a top chef moved him away from his home in Stafford to work at the famous Bath Priory Hotel.
Niall said “I’m really delighted with my win. This is the first competition I have taken part in. The standard of cooking was very high. It was great, meeting the competitors and all the right people to give good advice. It was a massive confidence boost for me”.
Gold and Silver Under 16’s
The Gold Award in the Under 16’s was won by Ashley McArdie a student of City of Bath College and Silver Jake Moxham, also of City of Bath College.
This is the fifth year of the Competition in Bath, which is run as a joint venture between the Hospitality department at the City of Bath College, the Bath The Initiative at B&NES and Initiative, Stuart Ash, Head Chef at Woods Restaurant and the main sponsor, Andrew Berman, boss of Catering Services International.
Well known Celebrity chefs were judging the competition, Hywel Jones from Lucknam Park, Stuart McLeod, Chef Director of of Zuidam UK and Dave Watts of Hurst House, Wales.
Dave Watts said “ I really enjoyed judging this excellent competition. I have seen a wide variety of good skills today in all groups, from the Under 16’s upwards. The seasoning in the dishes of the under 16’s was very good. It’s great to be involved in helping these young people.”
Main sponsor Andrew Berman, from Catering Services International said “It’s been a fantastic competition for Bath over the past five years. I am grateful to the judges for taking time out of their busy lives to give us the benefit of their experience, to the College for continuing to pass on their excellent skills and to the business community for getting behind the industry and understanding the importance of backing the continued improvement of those skills".
Steve Benison, a lecturer in the Catering Department at the City of Bath College, said he was thrilled with the way the competition had gone.
“This is becoming the most exciting day of the year for us and it's terrific to see standards increasing and competition being so intense. The College can be very proud that a student won the Over 23’s and that the Under 16’s were so well thought of by the judges. I hope this will inspire more people to enter next year, my advice is to get cooking !” said Steve.
The twenty-year-old Moody Goose chef walked away with the gold medal, going one better than in the first year of the competition, when he was runner up. Meanwhile the victor in the over-23’s was South African Pieter Swanepoel, 27, who has worked for the last three years in the Royal Crescent Hotel.
About the Chef v Chef competition
Chef v Chef is open to all talented local chefs within a 50 mile radius of central Bath. The annual competition is a joint 'not for profit' venture organised by Bath City College, The The Initiative at B&NES, Catering Services International, the UK’s leading specialist in catering and hospitality recruitment.
Website
http://www.chefvchef.co.uk
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info@chefvchef.co.uk