Loughborough College has been celebrating a double success, as two groups of young chefs reach the prestigious UK Young Restaurant Team of the Year grand final.
It will be the third year in a row the College has been in line for the title, after both teams of Hospitality and Catering students were selected at the semi-final to go through to the 2019 national showdown in July.
The two trios representing Loughborough College and its Radmoor Restaurant and meeting teams from across the country will be Grace McGreal, Kieran Rudolph and Ryan Archer and Finlay Royle, Isabel Morris and Tobias Booty.
Loughborough College entered the competition for the first time three years ago and have not only reached every final since but also won a top prize in 2017 and 2018. “I am over the moon and really proud that the judges chose to send both our teams to the final this year,” said chef lecturer and hospitality lead at the College, Darren Creed.
“The incredibly hard work both teams have been putting in has certainly paid off. It is a testament to the high quality of food and service they delivered that both were selected to go forward. An added bonus is that our students will have VIP access at the Skills for Chefs annual conference in Sheffield, where the final takes place, which will give them the opportunity to meet a host of celebrity chefs.”
These include Michelin starred Tom Aikens, Paul Foster and Clare Smyth MBE – the first female British chef to hold and retain three Michelin stars, plus James Golding, Ryan and Liam Simpson-Trotman and gastronomist Jeroen-van-Oijen.
With Kieran, Ryan, Isabel and Finlay in the kitchen and Toby and Grace front of house, the students are now taking the feedback they received from the semi-final judges and refining their menus as they prepare for July’s event.
The teams will be challenged to cook and serve their three-course menus, including pre-arrival cocktail and speciality coffee to finish the meal, and to select a starter and main course wine.
Isabel, Tobias and Finlay will be cooking and serving Salt Cod Baccala - a courgette flower filled with poached salt cod, garlic and lemon butter sauce with a Koppertcress-inspired salad; roast supreme of chicken with piri piri glaze, bolinhas de chourico com batata, grelos e chourico and Madeira jus and for dessert Pao de lo, Casa Luker chocolate filled with Baba de Camelo – burnt orange and olive oil cake with caramel chocolate mousse and vanilla ice cream.
Grace, Kieran and Ryan will meanwhile be producing poached lobster with Solferino vegetables, cold tomato essence, saffron and paprika oil; roast chicken breast and drumstick, crispy skin, olive crumb, roasted red pepper puree, kale, chickpeas and chorizo and a smoky jus and a Pastel de Nata – chocolate and almond crumb, cherry gel and chocolate sorbet.
The 2019 UK Young Restaurant Team of the Year grand final takes place during the Skills for Chefs annual conference in Sheffield 9-11 July.
Pictured: Two teams of students representing Loughborough College and its Radmoor Restaurant have reached the grand final of the 2019 UK Young Restaurant Team of the Year – (from left) Isabel Morris, Finlay Royle, Ryan Archer and Kieran Rudolph will be joined by Grace McGreal and Tobias Booty