TWO talented chefs from a wild foraged restaurant have made it through to the finals of the coveted South West Chef of the Year competition.

Harrison Brockington, head chef of Gather in Totnes, and his apprentice chef Tomasz Waskienicz, impressed judges with the two course meals they prepared at the closely fought semi-finals held at Exeter College.

Harrison made it through to the Professional Chef category finals while Tomasz won a place in the Student/Apprentice Chef finals.

No stranger to awards, Harrison’s fine dining restaurant in the heart of Totnes - which showcases dishes using locally sourced and wild foraged ingredients from the fields, shoreline, rivers and hedgerows - won a Michelin plate within its first year of being open.

The 24-year-old also appeared in Masterchef: The Professionals in 2020, after narrowly missing out on a place in the quarter finals, and won the student category of the South West Chef of the Year 2016.

Harrison said: “Both myself and Tomasz are really excited to be in the final, which takes place on Tuesday 25th October at Exeter College.

“The winners are announced at a dinner in the evening at Exeter Golf Club so fingers crossed!

“All competitions are nerve racking but when the cooking starts you tend to calm down and focus.

“For the semi-finals we were required to prepare a menu featuring the ingredients selected by the judges. All other ingredients used should be locally sourced – as we do at Gather.

“I was given monkfish and rack of lamb to prepare a starter and main dish. For the starter I chose the monkfish which I roasted in cep mushroom powder. I served this with seaweed with a mushroom taste and mushroom cream.

“For the main dish I roasted the rack of lamb and served this with a smoked potato croquette, creamed nettles, elderberry and mustard, and elderberry jus.

“Tomasz is in the student/apprentice category and was given sardines and chicken to also prepare a starter and main.

“For the starter he chose the sardines which he butterflied and torched, served with tomato and basil. For the main he served chicken farci, which is a stuffed chicken breast with wild mushrooms.”

Harrison added: “This competition means a lot to the both of us due to it being based at Exeter College - Tom is currently a student in the Michael Caines Academy and I attended the same course a few years ago, so it’s nice and familiar for us.

“In addition, I won the Student Category back in 2016 and hope that I have passed on my wisdom to Tomasz so that he can succeed this year.”

Among the judges are award-winning Michelin star chef Michael Caines, and Dartmouth celebrity chef Elly Wentworth of the Angel Restaurant.

The competition’s website hailed the semi finals “outstanding” and “very close.”

South West Chef of the year was launched in 2004 to recognise the extraordinary talent among the professional chefs, student chefs, home cooks and junior cooks of the South West of England and to highlight the exceptional standards in the region’s hospitality industry.