Twelve contenders chosen to compete for Junior Chef of Wales

The Staff Canteen
Chris in actionTwelve chefs will be competing in the regional heats of the Junior Chef of Wales competition next month. The bi-annual hunt for Wales’ culinary stars of the future begins with the North Wales heat at Coleg Llandrillo, Rhos-on-Sea, where seven chefs will be competing for a place in the final. They are: Arron Tye from Shared Olive, Hawarden, Mathew Morris from Bar Uno, Bangor University, Joshua Hughes from Quay Hotel, Deganwy, Sam Ricketts from Signatures Restaurant, Conwy, James Roberts from Ty Gwyn Hotel, Betws y Coed, Ryan Philipps from Castle Hotel, Conwy and Muhamad Aizat Mohd Radzuan from Orchid Pan Asian Restaurant, Aberystwyth. Five chefs will be competing at the South Wales heat which follows at Coleg y Cymoedd, Nantgarw on January 14. They are: Benjamin Cooke from Brains, Cardiff, Andrew Tabberner from Coast Restaurant, Saundersfoot, Ian McCormack and Wensley Macauly both from Coleg y Cymoedd and Vivienne Read from Celtic Manor Resort, Newport. Culinary Association Wales president Colin Gray said he was delighted with the number of entries this year and looked forward to two keenly contested heats. He said: “The Junior Chef of Wales contest provides the perfect platform for young chefs to demonstrate their skills and catch the eye of national team selectors. Previous winners have gone on to compete for Wales at all the major culinary competitions around the world.”welsh chefas The chefs were asked to submit their own creative menu for a three course dinner for four persons, using a selection of Welsh products. For the regional heats, they will now have three hours to cook their dishes. The winners of each heat together with the two highest scoring runners up will qualify for the final to be held at Coleg Llandrillo on February 16, on the eve of the Welsh International Culinary Championships. Along with the title, the champion wins an all-expenses paid trip to represent Wales at the Junior Forum at the World Association of Chefs’ Societies Congress in Athens, Greece in May 2016.
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.

The Staff Canteen

The Staff Canteen

Editor 19th December 2014

Twelve contenders chosen to compete for Junior Chef of Wales