The Staff Canteen Live College Tour event was created to reach out to catering students considering a career in hospitality, to give them advice and inspiration about the industry.
The chefs were part of a panel discussion where they spoke about their own careers, from the goals that they set themselves when they were starting off to how they dealt with setbacks. They then answered questions about sustainability, how to prepare for an interview and what it is about being chefs that continues to inspires them.
Students were entered into a raffle and two lucky winners were given a goodie bag including a TSC mug and a cookbook, and one was awarded the chance to stage at one of the panel chefs' restaurants.
The Staff Canteen also donated £250 to Hospitality Action on behalf of each of the chefs on the panel.
Raffle winner Reece Richardson, a level 3 professional cookery student at Milton Keynes College said: "I really enjoyed the event, I was glad I came. I met some great people and hopefully I get to meet more great chefs like them in my career."
He said he was most inspired by the chefs' advice "never to give up and to be loyal to improve yourself in your career."
Paul Welburn of the Oxford Kitchen said he thinks it's really important for chefs to attend events in schools and colleges to inspire the next generation of chefs.
"There are lots of misconceptions about the industry about it being too hard, and it's often glamorised. It's really good to come back here and share our experiences."
Jeremy Gibson,
Hospitality Action
Claire Clark said: "if we're not here among them, how are they going to know what a great hospitality industry is? They need to have this information now."
"Bringing us to them in their own environment and giving them this opportunity is absolutely amazing."
Marketing representative for Alaska Seafood Alicia Parker said that to attend TSC Live College Tours is a great way of meeting young people before they go into the hospitality industry.
"We think it's good to show them sustainable seafood and to raise the value of it so hopefully when they go out into the industry they can use it and recognise what the products are."
"The college tours have a really great format, it's an intimate environment so you can have a good conversation with the students who come through. You can connect with them, show them the product, let them taste it, see what they like and really engage with them."
In these challenging times…
The Staff Canteen team are taking a different approach to keeping our website independent and delivering content free from commercial influence. Our Editorial team have a critical role to play in informing and supporting our audience in a balanced way. We would never put up a paywall – The Staff Canteen is open to all and we want to keep bringing you the content you want; more from younger chefs, more on mental health, more tips and industry knowledge, more recipes and more videos. We need your support right now, more than ever, to keep The Staff Canteen active. Without your financial contributions this would not be possible.
Over the last 16 years, The Staff Canteen has built what has become the go-to platform for chefs and hospitality professionals. As members and visitors, your daily support has made The Staff Canteen what it is today. Our features and videos from the world’s biggest name chefs are something we are proud of. We have over 560,000 followers across Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube and other social channels, each connecting with chefs across the world. Our editorial and social media team are creating and delivering engaging content every day, to support you and the whole sector - we want to do more for you.
A single coffee is more than £2, a beer is £4.50 and a large glass of wine can be £6 or more.
Support The Staff Canteen from as little as £1 today. Thank you.
