Craig Edgell, of Margate’s Buoy and Oyster restaurant, is one of ten chefs who have made the Craft Guild of Chefs National Chef of the Year final.
The news was revealed to each chefs after receiving a bottle of Champagne Collet courtesy of Hallgarten & Novum Wines.
After making the top 40 in the competition last month, the chefs had to create an amuse-bouche or pre-dessert with the theme ‘A taste of summer’ using seasonal ingredients. The chefs were asked to bring this to life with a story of a personal food hero such as an inspirational chef, family member, mentor or industry personality.
A new group of judges marked this second-round stage with an overall score for both rounds created to find the top ten highest rated chefs. This year’s finalists are:
- Craig Edgell, head chef, Buoy and Oyster
- Adam Fisher, head chef, Pennyhill Park Hotel
- Cleverson Cordeiro, head chef, Frog by Adam Handling
- Danny Young, head chef, The Torridon
- Jethro Lawrence, development chef, Apetito
- Lee Tyler, head chef, Meadowsweet
- Matt Ramsdale, head chef, Northcote
- Nick Edgar, head chef, Hambledon Vineyard
- Orry Shand, executive chef, Entier Ltd
- Paul Gamble, senior brand innovation chef, Waitrose and Partners
Matt Abé, chef patron at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, said: “The 40 semi-finalists didn’t make this an easy decision for us and there was a lot of deliberation to select just ten chefs, but I am confident we have an incredible level of talent cooking for us in the final. The second stage was really impressive with some great storytelling around the food.
“There’s going to be some amazing menus for us to taste in October and it’s now just about refining them so the dishes are as strong as they can be. This year, chefs have three hours to cook their full menus and I am looking forward to seeing what impact this has on the end result.”
In the final, the chefs will serve up their original menus from the online entry stage but are able to make small refinements to ensure that they make the best dishes possible on Tuesday 8th October.
A mentor day will take place on Tuesday 3rd September at the Waitrose Food Innovation Studio. The finalists will also enjoy a VIP event at the Odney Club the evening before where they will have the opportunity to network and learn more about the competition from previous winners.
Essential Cuisine and Lumina are headline partners of National Chef of the Year, which is also supported by Churchill, Continental Chef Supplies (CCS), Evolve Group, Hallgarten & Novum Wines, Valrhona, Classic Fine Foods, Gastronomy Plus and St Ewe.
