Bird on-Board as 2016 Best Brigades Judge

Celebrated chef and restaurateur, Alan Bird, has been recruited in our hunt to find the UK’s hardest working chef team, joining as judge for Britain’s Best Brigades 2016.

The chef patron of Bird of Smithfield, one of London’s best new restaurant, bar and private dining spaces, joins incoming British Culinary Federation President, Matt Davies and Essential Cuisine MD, Nigel Crane, in a quality judging panel tasked with whittling paper entries down to just eight regional finalists.

Launched this January, kitchens across hospitality have until Midday on April 25th 2016 to go to www.bestbrigades.co.uk and register their brigade as Britain’s best. The competition is offering an £1000 prize alongside the kudos, a trophy and bespoke menu development masterclass with a leading chef.

Following judging, eight regional representatives from London, the South East, the South West, the Midlands, the North East, the North West & Northern Ireland, Wales, and Scotland, will be chosen to bring their paper entries to life in the form of a 60-second video.

The final eight videos will then be put to a public vote to decide which kitchen should be crowned as Britain’s best.

On his appointment, Alan commented: “I’m delighted to join Essential Cuisine in their hunt for the most outstanding kitchen team in the UK. Having worked in some high pressure kitchens, I know the importance of chef teams pulling together when it matters the most.

“Your brigade is your family – but it’s not just the best food, you need good communication, understanding and, most importantly, mutual respect to succeed in this game. Those are the attributes I’ll be looking for as judge.”

Nigel Crane, Managing Director for Essential Cuisine, added: “We’re delighted to have Alan on board – a chef with serious pedigree who, having worked as Executive Head Chef at The Ivy, as part of the Soho House Group and for six years mentored chefs at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen – knows what makes a good kitchen tick.

“We have had some fabulous entries into the competition so far, and I urge those teams looking to demonstrate their flair, togetherness and hard work, to not miss out and enter Britain’s Best Brigades today.”

Watch the entry video and get involved at: www.bestbrigades.co.uk.

In these challenging times…

The Staff Canteen team are taking a different approach to keeping our website independent and delivering content free from commercial influence. Our Editorial team have a critical role to play in informing and supporting our audience in a balanced way. We would never put up a paywall – The Staff Canteen is open to all and we want to keep bringing you the content you want; more from younger chefs, more on mental health, more tips and industry knowledge, more recipes and more videos. We need your support right now, more than ever, to keep The Staff Canteen active. Without your financial contributions this would not be possible.

Over the last 16 years, The Staff Canteen has built what has become the go-to platform for chefs and hospitality professionals. As members and visitors, your daily support has made The Staff Canteen what it is today. Our features and videos from the world’s biggest name chefs are something we are proud of. We have over 560,000 followers across Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube and other social channels, each connecting with chefs across the world. Our editorial and social media team are creating and delivering engaging content every day, to support you and the whole sector - we want to do more for you.

A single coffee is more than £2, a beer is £4.50 and a large glass of wine can be £6 or more.

Support The Staff Canteen from as little as £1 today. Thank you.