MasterChef finalist takes Young's pub head chef role
Pub company Young's has appointed MasterChef 2011 finalist Tom Whitaker to the role of head chef at its soon-to-be-relaunched White Hart in Barnes.
Whitaker will head up the kitchen team and create the menu at the revamped pub, which is set to open on 9 October.
Whitaker has experience of working at Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley and Fergus Henderson's St John, as well as running his own private dining company. He has also run a series of pop-ups including Porklife and the Day Boat Cooperative.
Whitaker said: "The opportunity to be involved with this project was too good to pass up. I have always felt that pubs and the cuisine they can offer should be the heart of British dining. It's great to be working with a truly British company such as Young's and I'm genuinely excited about what the White Hart can offer its customers."
Young's operations director Peter Taylor said: "We are very excited that Tom has come on board for this project. His passion for seasonal, British food and for offering a quality dining experience is a vision we share at Young's. Diners can expect great things from Tom's menu, which will demonstrate the creativity and skill that saw him through to the MasterChef final."