Craft Guild of Chefs was stablished in 1885, being developed into the leading Chefs’ Association in the UK and has many members worldwide.
Alex Angelogiannis wows judges to take top spot in National Chef of the Year competition
In the closest competition the Craft Guild of Chefs has ever seen, Alex Angelogiannis of The Glenturret Restaurant by Lalique has taken the title of National Chef of the Year. Finalists showcased their skills in an intense cook-off at the University of West London under the eyes
of some of the leading names in hospitality.
The impressive list of judges was a ‘Who’s Who’ in the culinary world including Kenny Atkinson, Matt Abe, James Petrie, Anna Haugh, Brett Graham, Tom Shepherd and Phil Howard.
To take the title, Alex served up a starter of Line caught mackerel, guts and all. His main course was a best end of Lumina lamb, rib, Coppa and offal dolma, followed by a dessert of Valrhona chocolate ; beetroot, lovage and brambles.The runner-up spot was clinched by Matthew Smith from Inver Restaurant whilst Cleverson Cordeiro of Frog by Adam Handling finished in third. The much-anticipated results were
announced this evening at a glittering awards ceremony at the iconic Hippodrome in Leicester Square.
After the challenging task of selecting the winner, Kenny Atkinson said: “I knew this was going to be an incredible final, but it’s exceeded all my expectations. Knowing how hard it was for us to select the finalists, picking a winner was never going to be an easy task and
today all the chefs have cooked from their hearts and shown incredible skill. Winning meant so much to every single one of these chefs but Alex’s high scores from our judges put him in that much sought-after top spot. I’ll be following his journey over the next year and am
confident he will be an incredible ambassador for the competition and wider industry.”
Whilst the title of National Chef of the Year is the prize that every chef is after, the competition is about so much more as the Craft Guild of Chefs aims to help develop and nurture the winner and provide culinary opportunities like no other.
Essential Cuisine and Lumina will be taking the top three on a two-day culinary trip to Liverpool. This experience will include visits to a local distillery, a regional independent supplier and a masterclass by one of the UK’s leading chefs, Paul Askew, followed by a private dining experience at his restaurant, The Art School. Further dining takes place at Paul’s 2nd restaurant, Barnacle, set in the famous Duke Street Market.These chefs will also be whisked away on a culinary experience in the heart of London which will include 3 Michelin-Star dining and an overnight stay thanks to CCS.
The prizes also include £500 and one year of membership courtesy of the Craft Guild of Chefs; an incredible two-day French experience visiting the Cité du Chocolat – the much talked about Valrhona factory; £500 to spend on the products of their choice in the Continental Chef Supplies (CCS) catering equipment range, an exclusively designed and framed winners’ plate as well as £500 worth of Churchill products and a magnum of Champagne Collet from Hallgarten Novum Wines.
Competition director and sustainability director at Sodexo UK and Ireland, David Mulcahy added: “It might sound like a cliché, but this competition genuinely gets more and more impressive every year as we attract new culinary elite to enter. The brief set by Kenny Atkinson really got creative juices flowing for chefs and we’ve seen and tasted so many outstanding dishes today. Alex now joins that illustrious list of chefs and will be firmly embedded in hospitality history, following in the footsteps of former winners such as Gordon Ramsay, Simon Hulstone, Steve Groves and more recently Ben Murphy. The Craft Guild of Chefs will be supporting him over the next year as they celebrate this success.”
Essential Cuisine and Lumina are headline partners of National Chef of the Year which is also supported by Churchill, Continental Chef Supplies (CCS), Evolve Group, Hallgarten & Novum Wines and Valrhona. ENDS Issued on behalf of the Craft Guild of Chefs by Digital Blonde Ltd.
Craft Guild of Chefs : The Craft
Guild of Chefs is the largest UK chefs’ association with members worldwide in foodservice
and hospitality, from students and trainees to top management working everywhere from
Michelin starred restaurants to school catering divisions.
The Ultimate Culinary Challenge
Seen as the UK’s most prestigious and respected culinary content, the NCOTY competition has a long heritage, having helped to launch careers and opportunities for some of the biggest names in the UK’s chef world. The passion, the emotion and the pure blood, sweat and tears you see in a cook-off, shows how much these competitions mean to a chef. It tests more than culinary skills; it tests character, resilience and raw emotion and only the best will take that top spot.
With the prestigious panel of judges, led by Kenny Atkinson, every chef who enters knows they will gain valuable feedback to help them improve; whatever stage of the competition they reach. There’s never been a more important time for chefs to push themselves out oftheir comfort zone and into the NCOTY spotlight.
NCOTY Criteria for 2023
This year the National Chef of the Year criteria focuses on food waste and the creative use of ingredients as the UK and rest of the world grapple with the cost-of-living crisis, food inflation, supply chain disruption and ongoing global events, which continue to challenge us
all. The NCOTY judges are keen to see how culinary skills along with sustainable, local and global produce are used to demonstrate an excellent understanding of ingredients.
They wish to invite professional chefs from all ethnic and gender backgrounds to join in this celebration by entering one of the UKs longest running and most prestigious competitions.There are no barriers to entry and celebrating our rich culture and culinary heritage is done
best when reflected by the diversity within the hospitality industry.
As we emerge from a difficult period for the food industry, they look forward to showcasing talent, welcoming chefs, and adding value and career opportunities to those who engage within the National Chef of the Year programme this year and into the next half century of
this fantastic competition.
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