Aspiring apprentice chefs from The City of Liverpool College cooked up a storm when they swept the board at one of the UK’s most prestigious culinary competitions.
Held bi-annually, the Salon Culinaire, held at in Nuneaton, had entries from around the country in disciplines such as live cookery, larder skills and display showpieces.
The five trainee chefs comprising of four Royal Academy of Culinary Arts Apprentices and one Professional Chef Diploma Level 3 Student, all representing The City of Liverpool College’s Academy Culinary Team, came away with a total of 36 awards from this annual event.
The incredible achievement included 10 gold, eight silver, eight bronze and four Best in Class. The City of Liverpool College was also awarded the top accolade of Best Visiting College for the sixth time in eight years.
The City of Liverpool College Executive Chef and Culinary Team Manager Ian Jaundoo (a Fellow of the Craft Guild of Chefs and a Master Chef of Great Britain) said:
“The success of these young chefs is a reflection of the quality of the courses offered at The City of Liverpool College. It plays a huge role in providing highly skilled staff to the city’s hospitality sector, and the college’s Royal Academy of Culinary Arts (RACA) Apprentice Chef Course is the only one offered in the North of England, giving our students a huge advantage.
He added: “It’s critical for businesses in Liverpool’s hospitality industry and for the city as a whole that we continue to supply highly skilled, talented and work-ready employees who can help to drive the sector’s incredible success forward.
“The RACA course places suitable candidates in the highest standard establishments across the country, not just the city, and as Lead Chef Tutor for the course, it is my job to ensure that these trainees are given the opportunity to work under experienced chef mentors and gain the knowledge and skills they will need to run kitchens of their own.
“Competitions like this give students an opportunity to showcase their larder and kitchen skills in a high-pressure environment, which is brilliant preparation for a career in the industry.”
Elaine Bowker, Principal at The City of Liverpool College, said:
“Almost every week we hear about a new restaurant opening in the city and it’s brilliant to see so many of our alumni playing a role in and contributing to this expansion.
“It’s such an important part of Liverpool’s visitor offer and of such strategic importance to the economy and our role as a college to ensure the city has the skills it requires to continue this economic development.
“We’re delighted at this latest success, not just for the students but also for the staff and lecturers who are helping them reach such heights.”
The City of Liverpool College’s success comes ahead of Visitor Economy Week, which runs from 3rd-7th February across the Liverpool City Region, and will see the college host a number of events to promote careers in the tourism industry, including a Game Larder Seminar event at the student-run Academy Restaurant.
The event will see world-renowned leading game chef and Senior Lecturer in Culinary Arts at Westminster Kingsway College, Jose Suto, deliver a condensed version of his acclaimed Game Larder Seminar. He will then work with The City of Liverpool College’s Royal Academy of Culinary Arts (RACA) Apprentices to prepare a game inspired dinner for guests.
Find out more about the up-coming Visitor Economy Week events, here: http://growthplatform.org/visitor-economy-week/
