Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropub chef on Great British Menu
Scott heads up the pub in Bodmin, Cornwall, which took home the Highest Climber award at the 2019 Estrella Damm Top 50 Gastropubs awards ceremony in January and is number 24 on the list.
The programme is back on BBC Two and will mark the 50th anniversary of the last time The Beatles played live together and celebrate Britain’s continuing success as a world player in music.
The 14th series started last night (20 March) and the new format will see regional competitors present their dishes to veteran chef judges including Daniel Clifford and Angela Hartnett, in two mid-week hour-long episodes.
Celebrate success
Fellow judges Andi Oliver, Oliver Peyton and Matthew Fort will have to choose the perfect four-course menu to celebrate the success of British pop music.
Commissioning editor Julie Shaw said: “The team in Birmingham have made this year’s Great British Menu bigger and better than ever.
“The theme – celebrating 50 years of British pop music – has brought out the best in the competing chefs and we some exceptionally creative and visually spectacular dishes. If you love food and drama, this is the show for you.”
The week will conclude with a 30-minute regional final each Friday where just two chefs will need to convince judges their dishes deserve a spot in the national finals and if they are impressive enough, to be served up at Abbey Road Studios, north London.
Andi Oliver said: “It’s all kicking off in the best way possible over here at Great British Menu headquarters. We have moved to beautiful Stratford-upon-Avon in the heart of the glorious Midlands and the brief this year is just sensational.
“We are celebrating the excellence and worldwide knockout success of British music. The passionate and dynamic new talented chefs in the kitchen this year perfectly mirror the inspiring exciting world of British music and holding the banquet at Abbey Road Studios is the spectacular icing on the top of a very big and very delicious cake.”
Better and better
Oliver Peyton claimed food was the new rock ’n’ roll.
Matthew Fort said: “If music be the food of love, eat up. Series 14 of the Great British Menu celebrates the brilliance of British restaurant cooking and flair of British music. Both just keep getting better and better.”
London and south-east
Competing chefs:
- Ben Marks, Perilla, London
- Luke Selby, Hide, London
- Paul Walsh, City Social, London
Friday guest judge: Mani (Gary Mounfield) former bass player of The Stone Roses and Primal Scream
North-east
Competing chefs:
- Michael Carr, formerly Restaurant 92, Harrogate
- Samira Effa, formerly Alimentum, Cambridge, now The Box Tree, Ilkley
- Tom Anglesea, The Laughing Heart, London
Friday guest judge: Pete Waterman, record producer
Central
Competing chefs:
- Kray Treadwell, Man Behind The Curtain, Leeds
- Sabrina Gidda, AllBright, London
- Ryan Simpson-Trotman, Orwells, Oxfordshire
Friday guest judge: Ali Campbell of UB40
North-west
Competing chefs:
- Adam Reid, Adam Reid at The French, Manchester
- Hrishikesh Desai, The Gilpin Hotel, Lake District
- Liam Simpson-Trotman, Orwells, Oxfordshire
Friday guest judge: Amy MacDonald, singer-song writer
Scotland
Competing chefs:
- Ben Reade, Edinburgh Food Studio, Edinburgh
- Gordon Jones, Menu Gordon Jones, Bath
- Lorna McNee, Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, Gleneagles
Friday guest judge: Keisha Buchanan, former member of Sugababes
South-west
Competing chefs:
- Emily Scott, St Tudy Inn, Cornwall
- Joe Baker, Number 10, Jersey
- Lee Smith, Samphire, Jersey
Friday guest judge: Reverend Richard Coles, former member of The Communards
Wales
Competing chefs:
- Andrew Sheridan, formerly Sosban, Camarthenshire
- Tom Westerland, The Brasserie at Lucknam Park Hotel, Wiltshire
- Cindy Challoner, formerly The Classroom, Cardiff
Friday guest judge: JB Gill, former member of JLS
Northern Ireland
Competing chefs:
- Alex Greene, Deanes EIPIC, Belfast
- Chris McClurg, Paul Ainsworth at No. 6, Cornwall
- Glen Wheeler, 28 Darling St, Enniskillen
Friday guest judge: Loyle Carner, hip-hop musician
Finals judges
Starter: Martin Kemp, former member of Spandau Ballet
Fish: Kanya King, founder Mobo Awards
Main: Andrew Ridgeley, former member of Wham!
Dessert: Peter Hook, former member Joy Division and New Order
Veteran judges across the series
- Tom Aikens - restaurants include Tom’s Kitchen, various locations
- Daniel Clifford - Midsummer House, Cambridge
- Angela Hartnett - restaurants include Murano and Merchants Tavern, both London
- Michael O’Hare - The Man Behind the Curtain, Leeds
- Paul Ainsworth - restaurants include No 6 and Rojano’s, both Padstow
- Phil Howard - Elystan Street, London
- Richard Corrigan - restaurants include Corrigan’s Mayfair and Bentley’s, both London
- Tommy Banks - Roots, York and The Black Swan, Oldstead
