Whitbread names kitchens of the year

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The top chefs from Whitbread's pub restaurants have taken the honours in the company's kitchen of the year contest after a hard-fought cook off.Nine...

The top chefs from Whitbread's pub restaurants have taken the honours in the company's kitchen of the year contest after a hard-fought cook off.

Nine finalists from Brewers Fayre, Beefeater and the recently launched Table Table brand competed in a two-course Masterchef-style contest.

Three pubs from each brand were selected to compete for recognition as a Kitchen of Excellence, based on their performance across the year on measures such as food safety, margins, customer complaints and mystery guest reviews..

Finalists were asked to produce a two-course meal - either starter and main, or main and dessert - in keeping with the brand. The event took place at KK Fine Foods in Cheshire with the teams of passionate chefs competing head to head in a Masterchef style cook off.

The three winners were the Plough Beefeater in Solihull, the Queen Victoria Brewers Fayre in Burnley and the Parc Britannia Table Table in Bangor, North Wales.

An Outstanding Chef Talent award went to Gareth Llewellyn-Roberts from Queen Victoria Brewers Fayre. who served up chicken, black pudding and bacon with wholegrain mustard sauce, followed by banoffee pancake.

Judges based their votes on criteria including taste, texture, skill and innovation, presentation, temperature, operational delivery and whether it met margin and brand criteria.

Each finalist received personalised chef's whites and a certificate, with the winning house from each brand awarded a trophy, £5,000 and a set of Victorinox knives. The winning dishes will be used as inspiration in upcoming menu development for each brand.

Keith Hudspith, head of food and beverage operations for Whitbread Hotels & Restaurants said: "The nine teams that reached the final really are the best in our business. It is a fantastic achievement for them to reach this stage; it was an exciting day and great that we can offer them the opportunity to showcase their talent and skill."

The finalists were: