Video: Young Chef Young Waiter winners announced
Mark Stinchcombe from Lucknam Park in Wiltshire and Ben Dantzic from Restaurant Andrew Fairlie in Perthshire have won the 2010 Young Chef Young Waiter competition.
The pair were announced as the winners of the annual competition at an awards ceremony held at London's Jumeirah Carlton Tower hotel last night, after a hotly contested cook-and-serve competition at London's Westminster Kingsway College.
Stinchcombe, who also recently won the Young National Chef of the Year award, took the chef title, with Dantzic walking away with the waiting title.
Second were chef Lahiru Jayasekara from Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons in Oxfordshire and waiter Julien Gardin from the Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire, while third place went to chef Tom Parker from Northcote in Blackburn, and waiter Thomas Aragones from the Fat Duck.
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###### Left to right: Young Waiters: Julien Gardin, the Fat Duck; Thomas Aragones, the Fat Duck; Dantzic, Restaurant Andrew Fairlie; Bob Walton, president, the Restaurant Association. Young Chefs: Tom Parker, Northcote; Lahiru Jayasekara, Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons; Mark Stinchcombe, Lucknam Park |
During the competition, the chefs were presented with a mystery basket of ingredients including partridge, turbot, clams and muscovado sugar.
Chefs were judged on their choice of menu, on their cooking skills and timing, while waiters were judged on their skill in serving the meal, customer contact skills and professionalism of their wine service.
Judges include Bruce Poole, chef proprietor of the Michelin-starred Chez Bruce, as the chair of the chef judges, and Stephen Mannock, programme director at the National Skills Academy for Hospitality, as the chair of the waiter judges.
Stinchcombe and Dantzic received a selection of prizes including £1,000 each courtesy of the Savoy Educational Trust, plus a three-day culinary course sponsored by St Pellegrino at the University of Alma, based in Parma, Italy, which includes practical courses on food, wine and water.
Young Chef Young Waiter, which is run in association with luxury hotel group Von Essen, rewards the best young chef and young waiter aged 25. It is organised by the Restaurant Association in partnership with HSBC, the Savoy Educational Trust and Sodexo.
Chairman of the Restaurant Association, Bob Walton, said that he was delighted with the standard achieved this year, which 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," he said.
"They are extremely talented. The industry will be safe in their hands."
[Young Chef Young Waiter finalists announced >>](http://www.caterersearch.com/Articles/2010/09/17/335119/Young-Chef-Young-Waiter-finalists-announced.htm) [Young Chef Young Waiter regional finalists revealed >>](http://www.caterersearch.com/Articles/2010/08/24/334780/Young-Chef-Young-Waiter-regional-finalists-revealed.htm) [Lucknam Park's Hrishikesh Desai named National Chef of the Year >>](http://www.caterersearch.com/Articles/2010/10/12/335475/lucknam-parks-hrishikesh-desai-named-national-chef-of-the-year.htm) By Kerstin Kühn E-mail your comments to [Kerstin Kühn](mailto:kerstin.kuhn@rbi.co.uk) here. ![](https://cdn.filestackcontent.com/0hcj0CnkR0aZyARLgtEs)If you have something to say on this story or anything else join the debate at Table Talk - Caterer's new networking forum. Go to [www.caterersearch.com/tabletalk](http://www.caterersearch.com/tabletalk) Caterersearch.com jobs Looking for a new job? Find your [next job here](http://www.caterersearch.com/jobs) with Caterersearch.com jobs
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