Master of Culinary Arts semi-finalists announced

The Academy of Culinary Arts has announced the semi-finalists of the Master of Culinary Arts 2013.

The semi-finalists include some great names from the UK culinary scene such as chocolatier William Curley and chef patron of Galvin Restaurants, Jeff Galvin.

Jeff Galvin said: “I’m very excited. It’s one of those awards that’s probably the pinnacle of anybody’s career. I’m not counting my chickens though; there’s lots of challenges ahead but I’m looking forward to the challenge and I’m determined to do my best.”

The full list of semi-finalists is:

CHEFS

Aurelie Altermaire Head Chef, L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon

William Best Sous Chef, Wiltons Restaurant

David Bush Senior Chef de Partie, House of Commons

Stephen Carter Head Chef, Boodles

Piotr Czerwinski Head Chef, Aramark, JP Morgan Chase

Robin D’Souza Senior Sous Chef, Le Meridien

Brian Fantoni Executive Chef, The Westbury Hotel

Jeremy Ford Chef Director, Restaurant Associates

Frederick Forster Head Chef, The Boundary

Jeff Galvin Chef Patron, Galvin Restaurants

Martin Hollis Executive Chef, The Old Course Hotel

Rajkumar Holuss Sous Chef, The Ritz London

Franck Jeandon Culinary Consultant

Andrew Jones Head Chef, Chamberlains

Steve Love Chef Proprietor, Love’s

Daniel Richardson Head Chef, Hartwell House Hotel

PASTRY CHEFS

Gerard Chouet Pastry Chef, Restaurant Andrew Fairlie

William Curley Patissier Chocolatier, William Curley

Denis Drame Executive Pastry Chef, Pennyhill Park Hotel

Graham Mairs Head of Pastry and Innovation, Morrisons

Joakim Prat Executive Pastry Chef, L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon

Paul Williams Senior Sous Chef Pastry, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons

RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT AND SERVICE

Dimitri Bellos Restaurant Manager, Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley

Mourad Ben Tekfa Restaurant Director, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons

Luigi Cagnin Deputy Restaurant Manager, The Ritz London

Sergio Cappello Restaurant Manager, The Travellers Club

David Durack Brasserie General Manager, The Arts Club

David Galetti Head Sommelier, Le Gavroche

Dimitris Leivadas Restaurant Manager, The Fat Duck

Pierre Rizet Mosser Restaurant Manager, The Montagu Arms

Robert Rose Restaurant Manager, Gordon Ramsay Royal Hospital Road

Elaine Watson Food & Beverage Support Services Manager, Gleneagles Hotel

The first semi-final for pastry chefs will take place place on Saturday 18^th May at Westminster Kingsway college. The semi-final for Restaurant management and Service will take place at The Connaught on June 3^rd. These will be followed by the chefs semi-finals on Tuesday 25^th and Wednesday 25^th June at the University of West London.

The Master of Culinary Arts (MCA) is a four-yearly award run by the Academy of Culinary Arts (ACA) to find the UK’s top chefs, pastry chefs and restaurant managers. It is based on the Meilleur Ouvrier de France (MOF) and counts among its judges Michel Roux OBE, John Williams MBE and Brian Turner CBE.