André Garrett, head chef at London's Orrery restaurant, came out the winner at the 2002 Roux Scholarship's final cook-off held at the capital's Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park hotel. Amanda Marcus reports.

Albert and Michel Roux set up the scholarship that bears their name in 1983 to encourage talented young chefs and provide a springboard for the best in Britain to realise their full potential. It remains the most prestigious award for an up-and-coming chef in Britain today.

When it was founded the maximum age for application was 24, extending over the years to 28, but this has now been raised to 30 because the Roux family believe the unique training stage that is part of the scholarship's prize is appreciated even more with experience. The minimum age has always been 22.

To reach the final, the six chefs had to submit a written recipe using loin of pork on the bone. Regional finalists were then asked to prepare and present their recipes, as well as a dessert from a surprise bag of ingredients, at two cook-offs. For the final, they were told 30 minutes before cook-off the dish they had to prepare and present - a secret closely guarded by Michel Roux, even from the other judges.

The prize
As well as the chance do a stage for up to three months at any three-Michelin-starred restaurant of his choice in Europe, all expenses paid, Garrett picks up £2,500 in cash, a trip with the culinary team on a luxury cruiser in the Caribbean, magnums of Champagne Gosset Grand Rosé and Grande Reserve, a trip to the wine cellars of Gosset at Aÿ, one year's free subscription to Caterer & Hotelkeeper, a trip for two to the Caffè Musetti roasting factory with a night's accommodation in Milan, an engraved piece of All-Clad cookware, and a commemorative piece of nickel silver-plated ware from Europ-Felix.

His restaurant, the Orrery, receives All-Clad cookware worth £2,000, a coffee machine and coffee worth £2,000 from L'Unico (Caffè Musetti) and produce to the value of £1,000 from the Personal Catering Company.

The dish

The finalists had two hours to prepare and present an Escoffier recipe of pot-roasted guinea fowl with sauerkraut for four with the added twist from scholarship co-founder Michel Roux of incorporating a lobe of foie gras into the dish as they saw fit. Potential pitfalls were discoloration of the foie gras if sliced - "Use a small cutter," advised judge Brian Turner - oversalting the sauerkraut and overcooking the guinea fowl. "There are lots of choices here - do you sweat the onions to cook the sauerkraut? If so, in what? Butter, foie gras fat, smoked bacon?" asked Michel Roux Jnr before the event got under way.

The eventual winner, Andre Garrett scored by opting for simplicity in cooking and presentation. "It was a simple dish but had to be done properly," he said.

The finalists

Winner: André Garrett, 29, head chef, Orrery, London
Runner-up: Darin Campbell, 29, senior sous chef, Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles
Andrew Jones, 24, senior chef de partie, Claridge's, London
Leigh Myers, 23, head chef, Simply Heathcotes, Preston, Lancashire
Glynn Purnell, 27, sous chef, Simpson's, Kenilworth, Warwickshire
Allan Thistleton, 29, head chef, UBS Warburgs, London

The judges

Michel Roux (joint-chairman), chef-proprietor, Waterside Inn, Bray, Berkshire
Albert Roux (joint-chairman), proprietor, Le Gavroche, London
Victor Ceserani (vice-chairman), former head of hotelkeeping and catering, Thames Valley University, Ealing, Middlesex
Michel Roux Jnr, chef-proprietor, Le Gavroche, London
Alain Roux, chef-proprietor, Waterside Inn, Bray, Berkshire
Brian Turner, executive chef, Brian Turner's, Crowne Plaza Birmingham NEC
Gary Rhodes, chef-proprietor, City Rhodes, Rhodes in the Square, Rhodes & Co Brasseries
Rick Stein, chef-proprietor, Seafood restaurant, Padstow, Cornwall
Matthew Fort, food and drink editor, The Guardian
Frances Bissell, cookery writer and television presenter