Catering trio reach the grand final of student chef challenge
THREE catering students from Loughborough College are heading to London in March for the Hotel, Restaurant & Catering Show after they progressed through to reach the Live Grand Final of the Country Range Student Chef Challenge,.
The students – Grace McGreal, Brannon Underwood and Luke Moffett - first passed a strict paper judging stage before Christmas and were then tasked with competing against other college catering students in a semi-final heat.
As part of the Challenge, run in conjunction with the prestigious Craft Guild of Chefs, teams of three fulltime catering and hospitality students, are required to plan, prepare and present a three-course, four-cover menu in just 90 minutes with a cost per cover of £8. This year’s brief focussed on how students can use classic techniques and skills to maximise the use of ingredients and reduce food wastage.
The successful trio will now travel to London for the Live Grand Final at the Hotel, Restaurant and Catering Show on March 3 and compete against ten other college teams looking to claim the much-sought after title.
Loughborough College hospitality and catering lead and chef lecturer Darren Creed said: “It was great to get such positive feedback from the judges at the semifinals. The team is really focused and have been supporting each other brilliantly as they tweak and practice their individual dishes. They are happy, they are ready and we are really looking forward to the final.”
Chairman of judges, Chris Basten, said: “Congratulations to the Loughborough College team on their efforts in the semi-final and good luck to them in the final stage. Their menu showed some fantastic creativity, techniques and flavours and their core culinary skills shone through. A few small tweaks to their menu could make them a real force in the Live Grand Final.”