This year's Roux Scholarship 2015 final takes place on Monday, at Westminster Kingsway College, London and there are six chefs hoping to win the prestigious title - Scott Dinneen.
This time the recipe details are a complete surprise; 30 minutes before the start of the competition the finalists will be given the recipe and ingredients for a main dish, either classic or modern and asked to prepare and present it to the judges. The Staff Canteen spoke to each finalist to find out more about them, their cooking style and why they entered the competition.
Name: cott Dineen
Region: London (originally from Aldershot)
Age: 26
Works at: Goldman Sachs, (BaxterStorey)
Job role: Senior sous
Cooking Background: "I knew age 15 I wanted to be a chef so I went to Brooklands College in Weybridge and was under pastry chef Alan Whatley who is chairman of the The Association of Pastry Chefs. He molded me into wanting to go into London and reach my full potential. "I did a stage at Claridge's which opened my eyes to five star cuisine. That pushed me to apply for a job at The Ritz which I started after college under John Williams. I learnt my trade there, it was fantastic - there were 50 chefs, it taught me to grow up very quickly and take in as much information as I could."
Cooking Influences: "Buying cook books was a given, every spare bit of money I had I spent on cook books! So I was reading and researching as much as I could - I like things which are unusual so I think Mugaritz is phenomenal. "If you're not learning something everyday then you are standing still. I eat out a lot from little backstreet restaurants to ones with Michelin stars, not just because it's nice to do but for work. I like trying new flavours and seeing what other chefs are doing and taking inspiration from them."
On The Roux Scholarship 2015: "The main reason I wanted to do it is so I could go to a top three star restaurant, it's a massive window of opportunity. I'd never done a competition before and I thought, what better way to start than at the top? I entered the scholarship last year and the year before that I did National Chef of the Year - that year Hayden Groves went on to win it and I ended up going to work for him! When I went for the job we talked about Roux Scholarship and whether I was going to do it. Hayden said 'if you really want the job you have to do the Roux Scholarship'.
"I wanted to see if I could stand up against the other great chefs in the country, could I cook alongside them and get somewhere? I also wanted more exposure as you feel like you don't see the outside world when you are trapped in a kitchen.
"Being in the final last year was a big eye opener, there were a few problems on the day that I've learnt from but I knew I had to do it again, I need to win it. It is daunting, I was cooking for Gary Rhodes, Angela Hartnett, Michel Roux - all chefs that you look up to and aspire to be."
Cooking ambitions: "I'm very much a country boy even though I work in the city, so for me I'd like to own a country pub or go back to a manor house. I did a stint at Pennyhill Park with Michael Wignall, it was a stunning location, out of the city and still cooking food just as good if not better than in the city. The produce outside of London is a real eyeopener for chefs especially having it on your doorstep."
