Scottish Chef of the Year semi-finalists announced
The Federation of Chefs Scotland has announced the semi-finalists competing for the title of Scottish Chef of the Year 2015.
Former MasterChef: the Professionals winner Jamie Scott, of Rocca Restaurant, and previous finalist Adam Handling, from Caxton at St Ermin's hotel, will be among the 10 chefs to make it through the initial paper judging process.
They will take part in the semi-final cook-off at West Lothian College, on 3 February, before being shortlisted for the final in front of an industry audience at the ScotHot Exhibition on 5 March at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC).
Past winners of the competition include Bruce Sangster, from Michelin-starred Elie restaurant Sangster's, Gary Watson from Gordon's Restaurant in Inverkeilor, and senior judge and past president of the federation, Kevin MacGillivray.
Ian MacDonald, the current president, said: "As a judge I know how tough this competition is. Competing live means that you are working under scrutiny from both the audience and the judges which allows no room for error, you have to have complete focus.
"This is not just about showcasing your skills as a chef but it's also about showing your confidence as a competitor."
The 2015 semi-final judges line-up includes: Joe Queen, former president of the Federation of Chefs Scotland and executive chef at the Tennent's Training Academy; Stephen McLaughlin, from Scotland's two-Michelin-starred Restaurant Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles; Ian MacDonald, president of the Federation of Chefs Scotland and executive chef at the St Andrews Links Trust; and past winner Kevin MacGillivray, executive chef at MacDonald Hotels.
The full list of semi-finalists:
Andrew Laycock, Wilde Thyme
Christopher Curtis, RAF Leuchars
Craig Gibb, Orde Food Co
Jamie Scott, Rocca Restaurant
Paul O'Malley, Culcreuch Castle
Robbie Penman, Houston House Hotel
Alex Thain, Cromlix House
Zoltan Szabo, Cameron House Hotel
Dougal McPherson, New College Lanarkshire
Adam Handling, Adam Handling Caxton