Kendall bags prize trip to South Africa

Steve Kendall, hospitality head chef at Merrill Lynch Investment Managers in London, has won this year's Sodexho Chef of the Year competition.

The event was held at the beginning of the month at Unilever Bestfoods in Crawley, West Sussex, but the winner was not announced until last week, at the Sodexho Gala Awards 2001, staged at Lord's cricket ground in London.

The six finalists had to prepare a three-course menu for two covers in two-and-a-half hours and had to devise their own menus around main ingredients provided - two whole lemon sole and an untrimmed rack of lamb. The dessert had to include almond as the principle flavour.

Kendall's menu comprised fillet of saffron-scented lemon sole, tempura crab and rice cake, mango and coconut salsa, followed by a main course of gremolata, roasted rack of lamb, lamb faggot, haricot bean and truffle oil mash and Madeira jus, and a dessert of cherry and almond pudding, white chocolate and amaretto ice-cream and orange and almond tuile.

The judging panel was chaired by Anton Edelmann, maître chef des cuisines at London's Savoy, Chef editor Amanda Afiya and Peter Hazzard, executive director of food services at Sodexho.

Kendall said he was delighted to have won, particularly as his prize - presented to him by Gary Rhodes head chef at City Rhodes, London - will take him on a food and wine exploration trip to South Africa. "I've never travelled outside of Europe before," he said.

Among the other prizes presented at Lord's was the winner of the Sodexho Junior Chef of the Year competition. Also held earlier in the month, at Sodexho's training centre at Kenley House in Surrey, the competition saw Kate Larby, head chef at Drivers Jonas in London, take the title for the second consecutive year.

Larby fought off five other junior finalists during a two-hour competition period during which she had to prepare a two-course menu for two covers. The main ingredients were duck for the main course and a sweet based around mango. Larby's menu was prosciutto-wrapped duck breast with pan-fried artichoke, celeriac purée and wild mushroom tortellini, followed by a trio of desserts - mango crumble, mango Malibu tear drop and mango and crème fraîche ice with tropical fruit salad.

As her prize, Larby will receive a trip to Rick Stein's Cookery School in Padstow, Cornwall, to take part in a Thai fish cookery course.

by Hannah Giles