Andrew Fairlie Scholarship competition return after year-long hiatus
CHEFS from across Scotland will compete next month for the chance to win the second ever Andrew Fairlie Scholarship.
The competition, which was introduced in 2019 in memory of the late chef and took a hiatus last year due to the pandemic, will see five chefs compete for two scholarship places.
They include Josh Wilkinson, senior chef de partie at the Isle of Eriska Hotel, Amy Stephenson, chef de partie at The Torridon, Spud Henderson, chef de partie at Craig Millar @ 16 West End, Ryan McCutcheon, chef patron at Achray House Hotel, and Peter Meechan, chef de partie at The Glenturret Lalique Restaurant.
The final of the contest will take place at Perth College UHI – which Fairlie once attended – on 16th November before the winners are announced at Gleneagles, home of Restaurant Andrew Fairlie.
Stephen McLaughlin, head chef at Restaurant Andrew Fairlie and lead judge of the competition, said: “We have had to wait a while for this year’s Andrew Fairlie Scholarship to come around and now that it is almost upon us, we are as excited and as privileged as ever to play our part in preserving and extending Chef Andrew’s legacy through nurturing and mentoring this year’s very talented finalists.
“The finalists can expect a tough challenge to be laid out in front of them on finals day, but at the same time the day itself will be fun, educational and inspiring.
“We are delighted to be partnering the day with Perth College and are over the moon to add the college to the list of Andrew Fairlie Scholarship collaborators.”
David Cochrane, chief executive of HIT Scotland – which organises the Andrew Fairlie Scholarship – said the judges “are very much looking forward to seeing [the finalists] in action next month”.
“This is a unique opportunity for these chefs working in Scotland to take on the mantle of Andrew’s legacy and experience some fantastic industry opportunities that will help develop their careers,” said Cochrane.
“Best of luck to all the finalists!”
