Press Releases

October 15 2008

Students battle for cooking honours

Two teams of students led by top Manchester hotel chefs did battle for cooking honours in a competition at The Manchester College.

The contest followed the format of the F Word programme on TV, with diners being asked to pay for their food only if they liked it.

Teams of students from The Manchester College and Cedar Mount High School, Gorton, were led by chefs David Gale from the Manchester Hilton and Andre Matter from The Midland Hotel.

The teams worked with the chefs to design and cook menus using some common ingredients.

Each diner had £20 in fake money to spend on food they enjoyed.  The diners were students and staff of the college and school, with invited guests.

In a close contest, honours went to David’s team – the blues - who cooked an “F Word” big breakfast starter, a main course of roast chicken with spicy noodles and a dessert of pear tatin with chocolate sauce.

The red team led by Andre cooked a hearty pumpkin soup followed by pan roasted chicken with Mediterranean vegetables then a dessert of poached spiced pear.

The event was part of the East Manchester Food and Drink Fringe Festival, organised by the urban regeneration company New East Manchester in partnership with Manchester City Council and the Zest healthy living project to coincide with the Manchester Food and Drink Festival.

Eddie Smith, Chief Executive of New East Manchester, said: “The students did a great job in the cookery challenge and the number of diners who chose to pay shows they created food that would be a credit to any restaurant.

“It was hard work and good fun as well as being a great taster for future careers in the hospitality industry.”

Peter Tavernor, Principal of The Manchester College, said: "It's been a great experience for our students. Working alongside professional chefs from two of Manchester's most high profile hotels is not something that happens to them everyday. Having said that, we do our very best to inspire all our students through excellent teaching and supportive environments, so competitions like this really complement the work we are doing on a daily basis."

Charity Buller, Director of Food and Hospitality Studies at Cedar Mount High, said: “It is important that our catering students get a taste of life in a high pressure kitchen environment and all responded very well to the challenge.  As for the diners, it was a great opportunity for them to enter a restaurant environment and critically evaluate each dish.  This event is an excellent way of raising the students’ self-esteem and encourages team work and peer assessment.”

Other events featured in the fringe festival included a celebration of cookbooks, healthy eating guides and delicious fiction at Miles Platting, Newton Heath, Clayton, Gorton and East City Libraries, a Savoury Saturday at Grey Mare Lane Market in Beswick to promote healthy eating and advice on growing your own food and recycling, an environmental roadshow, and a healthy eating day for local schools.

The Food and Drink Fringe Festival is part of New East Manchester’s Arts and Culture Programme.