Culinary Stars of the Future Shine at The Chefs’ Forum Spring Lunch at Bowood Hotel
Students from Wiltshire College wowed guests at The Chefs’ Forum Cotswolds, Bath & Wiltshire Spring Lunch on Monday, 19 May, held at the stunning Bowood Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort. The hotel’s Kerry Suite hosted the exclusive industry event which brought together top chefs, leading suppliers, and hospitality professionals. All attendees were treated to an afternoon celebrating local talent, seasonal produce, and collaborative culinary excellence.
Rupert Taylor, Executive Chef at Bowood Hotel said
“Wow, what an excellent event! This is the first time we have hosted here at Bowood Hotel, and I am pleased to share our kitchen with so many local students. At Bowood, we are passionate about supporting budding chefs and are proud of our links with Wiltshire College. It was a pleasure to create the main course on today’s menu, and my team thoroughly enjoyed cooking with our guest chefs from across the region. We look forward to many more events bringing everyone together like this. It was a great day with a wonderful turnout!”
Steve Lloyd, Deputy Head of Catering at Wiltshire College added
“It is events like these that give our students the excellent experience of working in functions in a real-life environment. The teaching team and I have thoroughly enjoyed the food cooked by our learners today, and I can’t stress how important it is to have such wonderful support from employers at Chefs’ Forum events. it was so rewarding to see so many local food businesses represented here today.”
Under the expert guidance of some of the region’s most celebrated chefs, 20 students worked both front and back of house to deliver a seamless experience, showcasing professionalism, passion, and promise throughout the event.
Guests were treated to a sensational four-course lunch, with each dish reflecting the creativity and precision of the chefs and students involved and all but dessert celebrated Asparagus season:
Starter by Kuba Winkowski (Box Bush, Bourton-on-the-Water):
Wye Valley Asparagus with Smoked Whipped Feta, Smoked Nuts, and Chilli & Herb Salad
National Chef of the Year and Borniak Brand Ambassador, Kuba said
“I used the Borniak Smoker to smoke feta cheese in my dish today – it’s a great piece of kit and I’m delighted that Rupert and the team have been given one by The Chefs’ Forum today – It would be great to collaborate on some new smoked delights in the coming months – I’m sure he will love the versatility and capabilities of this fantastic piece of kit.”
Fish Course by Ben Chamberlain (The Bull, Burford):
Coal-Scorched Salmon with Smoked Isle of Wight Tomato Dashi and Wye Valley Asparagus
Ben said
“It has been brilliant working with such talented students at Bowood today and to see how much they enjoyed working with the chefs in the kitchen – I too used the Borniak Smoker to smoke my tomato dashi and am looking forward to developing more dishes throughout the summer at WILD.”
Main Course by Rupert Taylor (Bowood Hotel):
Chicken with Wild Garlic, Wye Valley Asparagus, Morels, and Sauce Albufera
Dessert by Ashleigh Farrand (The Kingham Plough & Great British Menu 2025 Contestant):
Toffee Apple Doughnut, Butter Popcorn Ice Cream, Popping Candy Crumb, and Sour Blackberry Pâte de Fruits
Ashleigh’s dessert was the same delight she created in the final stages of Great British Menu 2025, which aired last February.
She said
“This dessert was in honour of Mel Gifford, of the famous Gifford’s Circus, who sadly passed away in 2019 due to cancer. The dessert was designed to evoke memories of the circus with popcorn, toffee apples, doughnuts, apples, and sour sweets. It seemed to go down as well with the students and guests today as it did on the show. Oh, the ice cream was actually a success this time. I lost by one point in cooking for judges but was delighted that Amber Francis won and went on to win Champion of Champions for her dessert course, an amazing achievement.”
The event was elevated even further by the aromatic touch of smoked delights prepared using the Borniak smoker, adding a rich depth of flavour that impressed guests and chefs alike. The smoker’s versatility and precision proved invaluable in enhancing the dishes and showcasing modern smoking techniques.
All in attendance commended the professionalism and enthusiasm displayed by the Wiltshire College students. From flawless front-of-house service to precision and teamwork behind the scenes, the students demonstrated why the future of hospitality is in capable hands. A copy of The Chefs’ Forum’s publication, The Chefs’ Knowledge, was awarded to Keiron Dinglasan and Oscar Conway as front- and back-of-house Stars of the Day, voted by the whole brigade and front of house team – Both a true credit to their college, however all students were exceptionally professional and enthusiastic, also supported at the event by their entire teaching team.
Dole Foodservice, Ritter Fresh, and Ritter Courivaud generously sponsored the lunch’s produce, ensuring the freshest and finest ingredients were used throughout the menu.
Catherine Farinha, Founder of The Chefs’ Forum concluded
“The Chefs’ Forum continues to champion education, collaboration, and innovation in hospitality – and this spring lunch was a glowing example of the industry at its best. Huge thanks to our National Business Manager Alexandra, our Event Executive Brogen, our Head of Design and Production Lee, our Junior Event Executive Danillo and Head of Media Carlos for everything they did behind the scenes and on the day to make this event a resounding success for all who attended.”
Huge thanks to the sponsors: Ritter Courivaud, Ritter Fresh, Pure Ionic Water, Chef Works, Big K, Borniak, MCS Technical Products and Dole Foodservice.
Film & photography credit: Carlos Farinha – CLICK HERE to see more food shots from Carlos Farinha.
