A chef at the Old Course Hotel in St Andrews has been named Scotland’s best young chef.
Ross Marshall, head chef at the hotel’s three AA rosette Road Hole Restaurant, won the young chef of the year title at the Scotland Food and Drink Excellence Awards.
The 25-year-old had been shortlisted alongside David Goold of Edinburgh’s Cafe St Honore and Scott Spink of Craigie’s Farm Deli and Cafe in South Queensferry.
Ross attended the Martin Wishart cook school for a cook-off where he and the other hopefuls were given a mysterious set of ingredients to prepare a dish for the expert panel of judges.
The St Andrews chef said he knew he was up against it as soon as he saw the standard of the opposition.
“The competition with David and Scott was very intense,” he said. “They are both extremely talented chefs so it is a real honour to receive this award.”
Old Course Hotel food and beverage director Simon Whitley declared himself “absolutely thrilled” by Ross’s victory.
He said, “His dish won the judges over and demonstrated his excellent skills, not just in terms of preparation and presentation, but also his talent for combining ingredients and flavours that excite and reward those who experience his unique cuisine.”
Edinburgh-born Ross, who has worked at the hotel for two years, came to prominence after launching a programme of suppliers’ lunches, which promoted partnerships between food and drink suppliers and the resort’s chefs.
The programme won the hotel a second Scotland Food and Drink Excellence award, “success through working in partnerships.”
Ross said, “The lunches provide an opportunity for some of Scotland’s very best suppliers to come together along with leading food and drink writers and journalists to see how we make the best use of the produce.
“The events highlight our passion for provenance and provide a taste of what is on the menu at the resort for the coming season.”
The judging panel noted that the programme demonstrated an “excellent example” of true supply chain collaboration and “clear evidence” of benefits to all.
“This was a very innovative approach to building close working relationships with suppliers,” a spokesman said.
Meanwhile, the resort completed a hat-trick as it won the group hotel of the year title at the Catering in Scotland excellence awards.
General manager Daniel Pereira was delighted by the clutch of accolades.
“Ross has shown us all that he is an extremely talented and innovative young chef,” he said. “He is real credit to the team.
“Meanwhile, the group hotel of the year award is a true testament to the amazing hard work that is put in throughout the entire resort.”