Historic chef competition International Salon Culinaire returns to ExCeL London on 20-22 March 2023 alongside Hotel, Restaurant & Catering as a must-attend event for chefs and hospitality professionals.  

Talented chefs from across the UK will compete in over 80 live and static competitions, ranging from Association of Pastry Chefs Dessert of the Year and Sugarcraft categories to popular new additions from 2022 such as the Apprentice Challenge and Pub Chef of the Year.  

The event, which is once again supported by Compass Group UK & Ireland as Headline Sponsor, will see the return of prestigious team categories including Tilda Chef Team of the Year, Craft Guild of Chefs National Chef Team of the Year and the Mystery Basket Grand Prix, plus the brand-new addition of the Lumina Lamb Challenge, where the winner will secure a once in a lifetime trip to New Zealand courtesy of Lumina Lamb. 

Click here to view the full list of judges for 2023

Returning Chairs of Judges for 2023 are Mark Hill MBE, Executive Chef at the House of Commons, Lesley Herbet, Author and College Lecturer, David Mulcahy, Culinary Ambassador – Food Development & Innovation at Sodexo UK & Ireland, and Stephen Scuffell, Consultant Chef Restauranteur and College Lecturer at Craft Guild of Chefs. 

They will also be joined on Tuesday 21 March by former MasterChef judge and HRC Chef Ambassador Monica Galetti, who will be speaking on HRC’s Vision Stage and recognising the Best-in-Class winners at International Salon Culinaire.  

Among the over 90 esteemed chef judges returning for 2023 are Cyrus Todiwala OBE of Café Spice, Gary Devereaux of the House of Lords, Dennis Mwakulua of the Lexington, Nick Vadis of Compass Group UK & Ireland, Matt Owens of the Craft Guild of Chefs, Martyn Nail of the Dorchester Hotel, Yolande Stanley MBE of The Pastry Training Company and Candice Webber of Thomas Franks of London.  

“We have seen our students flourish and gain massive confidence to face the world,” says Todiwala. “To all chefs: be bold, be brave, face challenges and be competitive, as it is facing an audience and creating the magic that is within you that what will make the difference for your rise and future achievements, and will give you the confidence to succeed.” 

New additions to the judging panel include Terry O’Riordan of Ketochefs, Shona Sutherland of the Tastyful and Scottish Culinary team and Wayne Roberts of the Royal Lancaster London. 

Salon Chef Director Steve Munkley comments: “Next year’s event is set to be another fantastic edition of HRC and International Salon Culinaire, attracting everyone from the UK’s leading chefs to the next generation of culinary superstars. Live competition is a great way for chefs to challenge themselves, meet industry peers and stand out from the crowd and I can’t wait to see what this year’s competitors produce.” 

International Salon Culinaire is working with a number of Official Equipment Partners for 2023, including combi ovens from Unox, refrigeration from Liebherr, and induction from Induced Energy. Unox will additionally be providing the Live Theatre Best-in-Class winners with an all-expenses paid trip to Italy.  

View the full list of judges for this year’s competition, and learn more about entering, at internationalsalonculinaire.co.uk.