S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competition is the biggest talent search to find the best young chef in the world supported by some of the world’s best chefs.
The competition has evolved since it first launched in 2015 to broaden the diversity of the participants and is now held biannually with more awards available and even greater mentorship. Young chefs are given global visibility and mentorship from some of the best chefs in the world. The competition is divided into regions with around 50 countries represented and emphasis on female chef participation.
Ireland’s Mark Moriarty was crowned best young chef in the inaugural edition, Mitch Lienhard from the USA in the second and Japan’s Yasuhiro Fujio was crowned winner at the Grand Finale in Milan in the third, and lastly, Jerome Calayag won the fourth edition.
Following regional heats, each winning chef is allocated a chef mentor to help them refine their dish and hone their presentation skills in order to best present themselves and their signature dish at the international finals, where they compete head-to-head with the other regional finalists.
The Grand Finale is held over two days in front of a grand jury of some of the world’s most famous chefs. Past judges have included Dominique Crenn, Massimo Bottura, Virgilio Martinez, Gaggan Anand and Paul Pairet. They will be responsible for determining the best young chef in the world and ultimately crowning the reigning “S.Pellegrino Young Chef”.
Additional awards are also given to young chefs that have excelled in other areas, including, The Fine Dining Lovers Food for Thought Award, the S.Pellegrino Social Responsibility Award, and the Acqua Panna Connection in Gastronomy Award.