The World Young Chef Young Waiter competition is set to launch with YCYW England on 14 March and the World Final scheduled for November 2022.
• YCYW England will be open to all chefs and waiters working in England who are under 26 years old from any background.
• The World Young Chef Young Waiter competition will aim to promote hospitality as a career of choice, a profession and a vocation in all corners of the globe.
• World Young Chef Young Waiter is supported by Arla Pro and Thermomix
• The event is supporting The Springboard Charity’s FutureChef and the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts Adopt a School.
Young Chef Young Waiter England Competition
• Entries open online for YCYW England at youngchefyoungwaiter.com on 14 March 2022 and will close on 30 June 2022 where a short-list will be selected.
• Entry is free for young chefs and young waiters who are 26 years old or under.
• Entrants can take part if they’re currently employed in the role of Chef or Waiter and have been employed for 3 years or more in the hospitality profession.
• The winners will be announced after taking part in a two-day live final at The International Convention Centre in Birmingham from from 18 – 19 July.
• Competitors from other regions in the UK are encouraged to enter YCYW England, and should their region launch, they will transferred to the relevant location.
World Young Chef Young Waiter Competition
• Further countries will be announced in coming months including Young Chef Young Waiter Maldives, Cayman Island and closer to home Ireland.
• The winners of each country will gather in November for the World Young Chef Young Waiter Final for a one day event with an Olympic style celebration in the evening to crown the winning Chef and Waiter
Judging
The digital entries will be judged by leading figures from the hospitality industry. Our inspirational judging panel includes head chef judge Adam Handling and head waiter judge Simon King. They will be supported by judges including Jason Atherton, Clare Smyth MBE, Theo Randall, Claude Bosi, Emily Roux, Jeff Galvin, Andy Downton, Johanna Wimmer and other big names in hospitality. Craig Hancox, General Manager and Simon Hellier, Executive Head Chef for Amadeus at the ICC Birmingham join the judging panel for 2022. They will be hosting the Young Chef Young Waiter Award ceremony at the ICC Birmingham in July.
Quotes
World Young Chef Young Waiter Chairman Robert Walton MBE said: “As the Chairman of this
event since 2006, I’m delighted to see Young Chef Young Waiter reach the world stage. We’re working with countries around the globe to find the best young talent in hospitality so contestants can demonstrate their best work and passion for their vocation. After the last two challenging years, it is time to unite the winners from each region in a special X Factor style final in November. The awards ceremony is sure to be a star-studded affair to celebrate this prestigious occasion and crown the first ever World Young Chef and Young Waiter.”
World Young Chef Young Waiter Managing Director Sean Valentine FIH said: “We have come such a long way in such a short space of time by developing a UK competition into the global Olympics of hospitality. World Young Chef Young Waiter places our sector at the heart of education, training and development for young professionals in this wonderful industry. The creation of the World YCYW global community will be at the heart of this competition providing a platform for shared ideas, creativity and cross fertilisation of talent.”
World Young Chef Young Waiter Head Chef Judge Adam Handling: “With sustainability at the heart of my ethos, it really is about investing in the future generation and making the future of this industry an exciting place to be. It is a real honour to be involved in a young person’s competition, to help mentor them, progress them and give them a spotlight to shine. Having competed in this competition many moons ago and seeing the doors that it opens for its competitors, I would definitely encourage the young talent of this industry to get involved. I’m super excited to see what talent 2022 brings.”
World Young Chef Young Waiter Head Waiter Judge Simon King said: “As a previous winner twenty plus years ago, I know how valuable and rewarding the YCYW competition can be as it gave me an incredible platform to build my career and network. There is no better time to showcase the fantastic young talent that this fine profession has to offer and to be able to do it on the world stage is just incredible. I’m thrilled to remain apart of this great competition can cannot wait for World YCYW 2022.”
The Young Chef Young Waiter entry site is here.
14th March 2022
