Rye Chef to Represent UK on Global Stage at S.Pellegrino Competition in Milan

Rye-based chef, Marcus Clayton, will be representing the UK at the prestigious S Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competition Grand Finale , this week announced to take place in Milan on the 4th and 5th of October

The event identifies and recognises the best young chefs in the world and celebrates the talents that will lead the evolution of the gastronomic sector

Marcus emerged in the competition for his brilliant talent beating nine other chefs at the UK final last year, and rising to the top of thousands of applicants around the world

The 26-year-old chef lives in Rye , East Sussex, and works at Hide and fox, in Hythe but will be star ting a new role at the Vanderlyle restaurant in Cambridge in the coming weeks Before the big move , vandlyle restaurant is on the move down to Hastings, where Marcus and Alex rushmer, will be doing a series of pop ups over two weeks cooking a vegetable led menu He has been working in kitchens since he was just 14 and went to Sussex Coast College

At UK competition final, which took place at CORD in London, Marcus won over the renowned jur y, including Sat Bains and Claude Bosi, with his signature dish, Celeriac , Apple and Mushroom It’s a dish he’s been perfecting over the years and one he chose to put forward to show how delicious vegetables can be

Marcus Clayton, (26), comments: “It feels ver y surreal representing the UK at the grand finale It’s been a great experience so far, preparing for the competition by working closely with Lisa Goodwin-Allen on my signature dish ahead of the next stage in Milan ”

To help Marcus on his journey to the Grand Finale in Milan he has been assigned Michelin-starred chef LisaGoodwin Allen as a mentor who has been providing him with guidance on how to improve his signature dish and suppor t him in his preparation for the international finals

Stefano Bolognese , San Pellegrino International Business Unit Director, said: We launched the S Pellegrino Young Chef Competition in 2015 to nur ture the future of gastronomy by discovering young talents from all over the world

The number of applicants for this fifth edition alone – over 4,000 globally – has confirmed the value of the project The competition is also a pathway to the S Pellegrino Young Chef Academy a global community – more than 2 000 talented chefs strong – with the aim to engage chefs through a series of activities designed to inspire connect and educate The Grand Finale held in October is a final step and a key moment in our discover y process Sanpellegrino wishes good luck to all the finalists ” Those competing for the grand prize will have the oppor tunity to cook their signature dishes again this time in front of a grand jur y composed of seven giants of international gastronomy: Eneko Atxa, Riccardo Camanini, Hélène Darroze , Vicky Lau, Pía León, Julien Royer and Nancy Silver ton The jurors will evaluate the finalists based on three golden rules: technical ability, creativity and personal belief, and the candidates’ potential to create positive change in society through food On their way to the Grand Finale , the young chefs will continue to work closely with their respective mentors to perfect their recipes