Aberdeen based Chef, Izabela Ginter has won the prestigious UK-wide Compass Young Chef of the Year prize, beating off stiff competition from across the UK.
The annual event run by the UK’s market leading foodservice business, Compass Group UK & Ireland, celebrates the best of hospitality and cooking from its team of professional chefs. After months of preparation, hard work and determination, the chefs plated up their dishes and the decision was down to the esteemed judges: Craft Guild of Chefs National Vice Chairman, Matt Owens; Head of Pastry at Piglets Pantry, Ana Paula Oliver; and Andrew Wakeford, Head of School for Food Academy, Restaurant Services and Hospitality at West Herts College.
Ginter, who works for ESS Offshore at the Rubislaw House office of Chrysaor, the UK independent North Sea oil and gas group, impressed with her Duo of Pan Roasted Corn Fed Chicken served with Seared Tomato Centred with Wild Mushroom, Jerusalem Artichoke and Fig Purée to take the title of Compass Young Chef of the Year.
The win comes after Ginter passed through an apprenticeship programme with Compass and has had a successful year, previously winning awards at this year’s Salon Culinaire in March.
ESS Offshore Business Director Ronnie Kelman, comments, “The team in Scotland is immensely proud of Izabela for bringing this prize home and congratulates her on the award. She has had an extraordinary year with ESS, having initially joined us in 2014 as a cleaning operative, she moved through various positions within the catering team culminating in finding her niche as a chef within the onsite brigade in 2018, and has now worked her way to winning a UK national title. We work with some of Scotland’s finest food producers, giving Izabela the best of food to work with, but the creativity and flair she brought to the competition was fantastic.”
ESS Culinary Director for Scotland Graham Singer adds, “We were really pleased we were able to make Compass Chef of the Year happen this year and a huge amount of effort went into putting such a great event together, ensuring the highest of safety standards were in place. Izabela was a great candidate and a joy to mentor during the run up to the event.”
Ginter has won an educational trip to New York which will be taken when current restrictions are lifted. This will allow her to take in the city on a memorable food tour, dining at the three Michelin Star Eleven Maddison Park restaurant, as well as the famous street food stalls in Brooklyn.
Reacting to her success, Ginter says, “When I started my journey in hospitality, I never thought I would be in the place I am now, having the opportunity to be part of incredible events and become Young Chef of the Year. I’m so proud of this achievement, which has been possible thanks to the support from the fantastic ESS team.”
