Michel Roux Jr and James Martin to judge South Devon chef in ‘holy grail’ contest

A young South Devon chef has won through to the regional finals of a prestigious competition to find Britain’s best young chef.

Torquay-born and former Churston Grammar School student Harrison Brockington learnt his trade at Michael Caines Academy at Exeter College in professional cookery and is Head Chef at the very well known restaurant, Gather in Totnes.

The Roux Scholarship is seen as the most prized cookery competition for young chefs (aged between 22 and 30 years old). 

In its 42nd year, it’s widely regarded as ‘the holy grail’ by many in the industry with a host of former winners now running their own restaurants and earning Michelin stars.

It’s being judged by Michel Roux Jnr (MasterChef: The Professionals, Saturday Kitchen, Food and Drink, Roux Down the River), Angela Hartnett OBE (Great British Menu), Brian Turner CBE (Ready, Steady, Cook) and James Martin (James Martin’s Saturday Morning), among others.

Harrison will now compete in the semi-finals in Birmingham on Thursday March 5th.

He will be one of 18 regional finalists.

This year, 12 of the 18 finalists are new to the competition, with four of last year’s national finalists qualifying among them. The chefs come from establishments as far afield as Northern Ireland and Devon and are aged between 23 and 29.

The 18 chefs, and two reserves, were selected from their written recipes that had to use a Devon White chicken, its livers and two accompaniments, one of which had to include leeks. The recipes were submitted anonymously to the judges, who took part in the Recipe Judging day at The Waterside Inn.

The 18 finalists will compete in two regional finals which will be held simultaneously at University College Birmingham and University of West London, Ealing.

Chairman Michel Roux Jr: “There was a very high level of cooking, which was reflected in how difficult it was to come to a decision on who to put through to the regional finals. The clever and full use of the whole of the chicken was what impressed us most: the carcass, the wings, the legs. That’s what we were looking for.”

Chairman Alain Roux: “It is great to see so many chefs have been supported to enter the competition by some of the best restaurants in the country at every level. It’s also great to see the past winners, our Roux Scholars, support their chefs. This is what it’s all about: passing on the skills, knowledge and talent to the next generation.”