River Cottage names Sam Lomas its Rising Star 2013

The 18-year-old from Macclesfield beat four other aspiring chefs at the final at River Cottage HQ in Axminster on Thursday after wowing judges, including River Cottage founder Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, with his dish of mackerel with beetroot, apple and horseradish salad, marinated julienne of courgette and goats cheese soda bread. 

Lomas, who read about the competition through the River Cottage newsletter he subscribes to, told BigHospitality he had not considered a career in hospitality previously, but was now seriously considering a future around food.

"I was planning on taking a more academic route, but when this competition came up I thought I'd give it a try. I don't have much professional experience in the kitchen - during my GCSE's I did two weeks' work experience in a restaurant where I learnt some basic skills, but that was it," he said.

"I'll see how it goes over the year, but in terms of my ambitions for a career in the hospitality and catering industry, I like places like River Cottage and the Ludlow Food Centre where food production and retail are combined." 

Apprenticeship​

The young chef said he was excited about starting the year-long apprenticeship and taking on his role of fronting the scheme, which aims to arm young chefs with the skills they'll need for the future. His role will include writing a blog and working with the other finalists - Jack Botha, Florence Cornish, Freyja Davis and Ian Chin - to develop recipes. 

To reach the final, the five finalists had already been subjected to a public vote and interviewed by a judging panel. During the final they had to prepare a dish that reflected their cooking style and passion for food in front of a large audience and a film crew. 

All finalists will take up a place on the River Cottage Young Chef Apprenticeship Scheme which this year has doubled its number of places to 70 to develop budding chefs aged between 16 and 19.