3rd February 2020

College trainee chefs are cream of the crop at prestigious UK competition

The College’s aspiring apprentice chefs proved a cut above the rest recently when they swept the board at one of the UK’s most prestigious culinary competitions.

Five trainee chefs including four of the College’s Royal Academy of Culinary Arts (RACA) apprentices and a level 3 Professional Chef student, scooped a spectacular thirty-six awards at the bi-annual Salon Culinaire, one of the country’s fiercely fought culinary competitions.

The apprentices incredible haul included ten gold, eight silver, eight bronze and four Best in Class accolades.  The college also walked away with the top prize of Best Visiting College for the sixth time in eight years.

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: “Competitions such as 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. The success of these young chefs reflects the quality of courses offered at The City of Liverpool College, and we play a huge role in providing a highly skilled workforce for the city’s hospitality sector.  The 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 that we continue to supply highly skilled, talented and work-ready staff who steer the incredible success of Liverpool’s hospitality sector.”

City of Liverpool College principal, Elaine Bowker, said: “We’re delighted at this latest success, not only for the students but also for the staff and lecturers who are helping them reach such heights.  In the run up to National Apprenticeship Week (3-7 Feb), this is a shining example to businesses in the region of the top class apprentices we produce here at the College. It also reflects on the calibre of teaching staff we have mentoring our trainees, in not only preparing them for the workplace but also taking them to the next level, to guarantee that from the start of their journey our apprentices are an immediate asset to any organisation.

“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 that Liverpool has the skills it requires to continue its economic development.”

The City of Liverpool College’s success comes ahead of Visitor Economy Week, which runs 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 RACA Apprentices to prepare a game inspired dinner for guests.

Read full story at: https://www.entirelyfood.com/news/northwest/liverpool/the-city-of-liverpool-college-chefs-a-cut-above-the-rest-at-prestigious-national-competition4311

Find out more about upcoming events during Visitor Economy Week: 3-7 February at: http://growthplatform.org/visitor-economy-week/