32 ambitious young chefs through to the second stage of the Graduate Awards 2021

Craft Guild of Chefs CGOC

The Craft Guild of Chefs

Premium Supplier 7th June 2021
Craft Guild of Chefs CGOC

The Craft Guild of Chefs

Premium Supplier

32 ambitious young chefs through to the second stage of the Graduate Awards 2021

The Craft Guild of Chefs has announced it will be taking 32 young chefs through to its next round of the Graduate Awards, scheduled to take place in London and Sheffield in June and July. Over the next few weeks, chefs will be using a range of inspiring mentoring videos to help them practise for the semi-final stage. This includes butchery and fishmongery tasks and instructions on how to make an apple tart; these videos have been created by Westminster Kingsway College and Andrew Ditchfield, pastry chef at the House of Commons.


The Graduate Awards offer chefs aged under 25 the chance to improve their culinary skills, build confidence, network with industry peers and the opportunity to put themselves into the national spotlight. Graduate Awards achievers have gone on to win competitions such as Young National Chef of the Year, secure exciting promotions, and gain Michelin stars. This year the event will be chaired by former National Chef of the Year and head chef at The Falcon Castle, Russell Bateman and consultant pastry chef, Will Torrent. 

Taking part in the Sheffield Kitchen semi-final will be:


• Megan Beale 
• Phillip Ho 
• Chris Lowe 
• Abigail De-Ats 
• Tomas Wood 
• Joseph Ebanks 
 • Charlotte Benbow 
 • Tyler McKeevor 
• Charles Knight 
• Adam Childs 
• Theo Hadjitofi 
• Connor Farrer


Completing the London Kitchen semi-final will be: 
• Gerry Sands 
• George Baldwin-Edie 
• Thomas Bayliss 
• Kenny Markham 
• Taylor Davis 
• Opeoluwa Odutayo #
• Joshua Singer 
• Adem Eyyup Ali 
• Josh Oliver Butler 
• Maia Bashford 
• Aneta Styrkacz 
• Lewis Tull


The chefs through to the next round of the Pastry Graduate Award are: 
• Angel Townsend 
• Amelia Ng 
• Alister Halbert 
• Beth Disley-Jones 
• Abdul Haq Siddiqui 
• Abby Finch 
• Natasha Stinchcombe 
 • Reuben Mowbray


Founder of the Graduate Awards and Vice-President of the Craft Guild of Chefs, Steve Munkley said: “It’s been really inspiring to see chefs putting themselves forward for this year’s event despite many young chefs still being on furlough or facing uncertainty over their futures during the entry stage. I believe these chefs have done the right thing in pushing themselves to work on their skills so they can come back stronger and really focus on their own careers. However, we know things are still challenging for young chefs so our committee will be on hand to support them on this journey. For the first time ever, we’ve introduced a mentor to the final exam who will be there to help chefs with any questions they may have; mentoring is going to be so important as chefs look to grow in confidence.” 

You can follow updates on the Graduate Awards by following the Craft Guild of Chefs social media channels or the hashtag #CGCGradAwards.

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