National Chef of the Year semi-finalists announced

The semi-finalists for the 2011 Craft Guild of Chefs' National Chef of the Year competition have been announced.

They have been selected through a paper judging process and will compete at three cook-offs held in London, Portsmouth and Sheffield between 5 and 15 September. Each semi-final will concentrate on a different type of cuisine. The categories include Asian and Oriental; modern British and European; and Rest of the World. The 40 semi-finalists will compete in regional semi-final cook-offs

Ten chefs will then compete in the National Chef of the Year live final, which will take place at London's Restaurant Show on 11 October, where the judging panel will include Michelin-starred chefs Atul Kochhar and Chris Galvin.

David Mulcahy, organiser of the competition and vice-president of the Craft Guild of Chefs, said entries this year had been "stronger than ever".

"Winning the title is an outstanding achievement and the tremendous prize package up for grabs, worth in excess of £15,000, is a true reflection of that," he said.

"Aside from being awarded the esteemed title of National Chef Of The Year, the winner will receive a host of top-class prizes including an exclusive study trip to France, courtesy of Lockharts, one of the headline sponsors of this year's event, plus wine tasting in the acclaimed Hermitage region and dinner at a three-starred Michelin restaurant."

Past winners of the National Chef of the Year competition include Gordon Ramsay, Mark Sargeant, Eyck Zimmer and Simon Hulstone, while last year's winner was Hrishikesh Desai, head chef at the Brasserie at Lucknam Park Hotel in Wiltshire.

This year's 40 semi-finalists
James Baker, sous chef, ESS Support Services
Marcus Bean, chef/owner, the New Inn
James Buckley, executive chef UCL, Compass Group
David Bush, senior chef de partie, House of Commons
Pratap Chahal, head chef, the Peasant
Paul Anthony Cunliffe, head chef, Crown Hotel
Micheal Dipple, junior sous chef, Cannizaro House
Glenn Evans, development chef, Reynolds Catering Supplies
Gary Fish, hospitality manager, Bite Catering
Frederick Forster, head chef, 44 Restaurant and Lounge
Justin Galea, head chef, Turnberry Luxury Collection Resort
Hayden Groves, executive chef, Lloyds of London, Avenance
Daniel Jones, head chef, the Harp Inn
Imthiaz Kader, head chef, Park Plaza Westminster Bridge
Diane Kay, sous chef, Carlton Club
Selin Kiazim, sous chef, Kopapa
Peter Knibb, chef/proprietor, Restaurant 23
Ashwani Kumar, head chef, Mango Lounge Windsor
Joe McCafferty, senior chef de partie, ROKA restaurant
Palash Mitra, sous chef, the Cinnamon Club
Ian Morgan, executive chef, Cucina
Martin Nisbet, Angelus Restaurant
Ryan Perratt, head chef, the National Café, Peyton and Byrne
Robert Potter, sous chef, Lucknam Park Hotel
Sudha Shankar Saha, executive chef, Saffron
Sujan Sarkar, head chef, Automat Restaurant
Hansel Sheldon, executive sous chef, the Dorchester Collection
Kevin Sutherland, executive services senior sous chef, Barclays Bank-Baxter Storey
Michael Tate, chef de partie, Harvey Nichols, Manchester
Daniel Towell, head chef, Avenance, Elior
Dez Turland, executive chef, Brend Hotels Saunton Sands
Ernustus Van Zyl, chef Practical tutor, Devere Hospitality Academy
Adrian Vaughan, senior sous chef, Runnymede on Thames
Simon Webb, head chef, Restaurant Associates
Alyn Williams, chef/patron, the Westbury
Joo Young Won, senior sous chef, Galvin at Windows Restaurant
Andrew Wong, chef, Bumbles Restaurant
Simon Woods, lecturer, Westminster Kingsway College
Andrew Wright, chef, Arden Hotel
Terry Wright, head chef, Compass Group

Philip Howard picks up Special Award at Craft Guild of Chefs Awards >>

Lucknam Park's Hrishikesh Desai named National Chef of the Year >>

National Chef of the Year finalists unveiled >>

By Kerstin Kühn

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