Five Star Kitchen: Britain's Next Great Chef - The Chefs

30 May 2023

Igor

• 31
• Senior Sous Chef
• Concept: Nordic

Igor, was born to a single parent family in Russia. As an infant Igor became deaf due to the use of a banned antibiotic and knowing his future would be impaired due to his disability, his family moved to Sweden to give Igor a better chance in life. With a self-proclaimed heightened sense of taste due to his lack of hearing, he began working in restaurants in Sweden, before moving to London to be a Senior Sous Chef under Gordon Ramsay. His dream is to open the first Nordic restaurant inspired by his own deafness that elevates all the other senses – vision, taste, smell and touch.

 

Lara

• 24
• Supper Club Owner
• Concept: Theatrical Dining Experience

24-year-old, Ibizan born Lara is the youngest chef in the competition. Mischievous and playful, Lara puts her personality into her food. After a string of jobs in 5-star kitchens like the Ritz, Lara realised, although the guests were enjoying their food, no one was ‘having fun’ so she started her own immersive theatrical dining supper club. Trying her concept out at the Langham, Lara hopes to wow the judges with fun and playfulness in an attempt to release their inner child.

 

Sue

• 39
• Senior Sous Chef
• Concept: Flavours of the Orient

Sue moved to the UK from Hong Kong at the age of 10. She’s been cheffing for more than twenty years, but her restaurant concept stays true to her roots.

 

Dom

• 40
• Private Chef
• Concept: Elevated Caribbean

Dom grew up with a single mum, from the Caribbean, who worked around the clock to support Dom and his five siblings. Helping his mum out, Dom took the role as family chef from a young age and turned it into a career. Working in smart hotels and restaurants he eventually decided to return to his roots and set up his own Caribbean pop up. His concept is elevated Caribbean, and he hopes to beat the stigma around Caribbean food being unrefined and open the first 5-star Caribbean restaurant in a London hotel.

 

Dinesh

• 31
• Catering Company Owner
• Concept: All Day Patisserie

Dinesh grew up in a British-Indian household, where he had two obsessions – Hollywood soap operas and his grandma’s Gujarati sweets. He’s brought this sweet tooth to his cooking and hopes to create a restaurant reminiscent of classic French bakeries.

 

Jordan

• 29
• Head Chef and Restaurant Owner
• Concept: Three Distinct Flavours

29-year-old, Leicestershire-born Jordan was a self-confessed ‘bad boy’ growing up – always in trouble with the police and struggling with drug abuse in his early years. After a bad break up he eventually ended up homeless and had to live in the woods hunting and eating rabbits to survive. Walking miles to keep his job as a junior chef in a kitchen, he credits this as ‘saving his life’ - first getting his own flat and after years working his way up the ladder - to owning his own restaurant. Proving you can have success wherever you come from, his signature dish is ‘Rabbit in the Woods’, to represent his journey and show off his concept that three simple flavours is all you need to make a luxury dish.

 

Rebecca

• 29
• Pastry Chef
• Concept: British Tapas

Outspoken pastry chef Rebecca, grew up with food as the focus in her family. She wants to bring a British tapas concept to five-star dining.

 

Nestor

• 25
• Chef de Partie
• Concept: Classic French

Nestor is one of the rising stars of the cheffing world in Glasgow where he specialises in classic French cuisine. It’s a long way off from the Democratic Republic of Congo, which Nestor fled aged 17-years-old.

 

Joyce

• 29
• Private Chef
• Concept: Congolese Fusion

A private caterer for celebrities, Joyce, has decided to follow the influences of her Congolese parents, who moved to London to give their kids a brighter future. With their work ethic instilled, she now hopes to bring her the flavours of the Congo to the 5-star world.

 

Travis

• 38
• Senior Sous Chef
• Concept: Tex Mex

Texan born, Travis Catfish Orfus – was aptly given the middle name Catfish, because there were so many in the lake near his home. Following, his passion for traditional Tex-Mex food but using the finest British ingredients, he believes any 5-star hotel would eat it up.

 

Anne

• 49
• Gastropub Owner
• Concept: Nose to Tail, Root to Leaf

Anne says, ‘she always wanted to be rich’ and from a string of successful business’, she made that happen. Looking for another project, she got drunk in a gastropub and when the owners told her it was for sale, she bought it and became its Head Chef. With a passion for British produce and using the whole ingredient, her concept of nose to tail and root to leaf will be sophisticated, glamourous and a little bit posh – just like her.

 

Raquel

• 40
• Catering Company Owner
• Concept: Elevated Puerto Rican

Raquel is mum of four young kids, who balances motherhood with running a successful catering business in her hometown of LA. Passionate about the Puerto Rican food she learnt from her grandmother, she hopes to refine it and take it to the international, 5-star stage.

 

Adria

• 40
• Café Owner
• Concept: Vegetables is the star, meat is the side

Canadian born Adria, grew up in a traditional Chinese family and was given three career options - lawyer, engineer or doctor. After originally training as an engineer, Adria went against her parents' wishes and decided to follow her passion and retrain as a chef. She now owns a string of successful Cafes in London. With a focus on healthy living and considering the environment, she believes putting vegetables at the forefront of the meal, instead of the meat is a way to give the 5-star guests a more balanced, whilst still luxury, diet.

ENDS

For more information about the series, contact Nick Walker, Channel 4 Press Office