The Savoy Hotel

Next and final stop the Savoy hotel. Six of us would cook here for the ultimate accolade of been named the best of our course categories. Oh- to be crowned Britain’s best starter dish would be such a triumph, what an achievement. But equally what an honour to be allowed to cook in the professional kitchen at the Savoy hotel, for none other than the executive chef Bernard; as well as the food and beverage and restaurant managers. This is where we really had to impress- no time for panic or slip ups today!

I arrived the day before and met up with Ivan, the other starter cook. It was lovely to see him as we got on very well right from our first meeting at the catering college.

In the evening g we dined in the Strand Palace hotels al a carte’ restaurant and chatted about our experiences on the show, then we wished one another well until the morning.

I slept surprisingly well and was up bright and early, ready to face the Savoy. What a beautiful hotel, recently refurbished to its former glory, it was all that I expected and more. Expectations of us would be exceptionally high here, I was in awe!

Before cooking we met Bernard a very tall and plain talking man, he told us that nothing but the best would be acceptable and so the pressure was on.

Ivan and I were the first to cook our dishes, Jilly popped in to see us and warned me to finely chop my parsley but other than that the other judges were pleased with what I was doing. Time moved swiftly on but I felt more organised this time and very confident that my dish would be right. The kitchen was surprisingly small, so it was a good job Ivan and I got on so well!

All went to plan and it was time to deliver our starters to the Savoy team, I felt so nervous. To please the judges here would be my ultimate dream. Both dishes looked fantastic we had raised our game; this was cooking at the highest level.

All three judges tasted, there were a lot of nodding and then a smile spread across Bernard’s face, he looked at me and said- “...your dish, it is delicious.” I couldn’t have hoped for more- high praise indeed! Now we would have to wait until the other main and desert cooks had finished their dishes.

It was such a long wait, the film crew booked into one of the suites at the hotel so that we could wait in comfort. We were all so tired with anticipation, exhausted from the hot heat of the kitchen and drained from the experience. It was hours before we were all called back downstairs. Even then it seemed to take the film crew for ever to arrange everyone into position. I felt quite dizzy, the waiting had been long the decision was imminent. It all got a little too much and I swooned. Mary Nightingale was the first on the scene, she was so kind. A sweet cup of tea and a blast of fresh air and I was back on my feet again. This competition really meant something. I love to choose fresh local produce and create a dish. This is my passion, what I want to do; here was an opportunity to establish myself.

I could not believe it the judges at the Savoy chose me as Britain’s best starter. I had won- I was the creator of Britain’s Best Starter Dish 2011. What an achievement, I felt so overwhelmed.