Tom Kerridge warns chefs about virality
- Michelin-starred chef Tom Kerridge said young cooks are being pulled toward “social media chef” fame instead of the classical route of kitchen training, as the Roux Scholarship spotlight returned to apprenticeships and competition cooking. - The clearest example was 28-year-old Harrison Brockington, who won the 2026 Roux Scholarship after a mystery-box final in Bray and earned up to £12,000 plus a two-month stage at a three-star Michelin restaurant. - Kerridge’s warning lands as British hospitality is under financial strain, with him saying his five restaurants are “making no money at all.” (thecaterer.com)
Tom Kerridge said young chefs are being drawn toward online fame instead of the older path of kitchen training, competitions and apprenticeships. (theguardian.com) He made the warning in comments tied to this year’s Roux Scholarship, one of Britain’s best-known chef competitions. Kerridge has built his reputation at The Hand & Flowers in Marlow, the first pub to win two Michelin stars. (theguardian.com) (wikipedia.org) The competition’s 2026 winner was Harrison Brockington, the 28-year-old head chef and owner of Gather in Totnes, Devon. He beat five other finalists on Monday, April 13, at the Waterside Inn in Bray, Berkshire. (thecaterer.com) (instituteofhospitality.org) Finalists had 45 minutes to study the brief and ingredients, then up to three hours to cook a Mediterranean-inspired surf and turf for four people. The mandatory ingredients included Dover sole, cuttlefish, minced pork, sausage meat and citrus fruit. (thecaterer.com) Brockington’s prize was not publicity alone. The 2026 Roux Scholar receives up to £12,000 and either a two-month stage at a three-Michelin-starred restaurant anywhere in the world or a bespoke training program built around specific skills gaps. (thecaterer.com) That is the model Kerridge was pointing to: long kitchen hours, judged competition work and formal development under senior chefs. Brockington himself trained at the Michael Caines Academy at Exeter College before opening Gather with friends in 2019. (instituteofhospitality.org) (radioexe.co.uk) Mauro Colagreco, the honorary president of judges and founder of the three-Michelin-starred Mirazur in France, said the six finalists showed “different skills” and “huge potential.” The judges included Alain Roux, Michel Roux, Emily Roux, Angela Hartnett, Simon Hulstone and André Garrett. (thecaterer.com) (instituteofhospitality.org) Kerridge’s comments also come as restaurant economics are tightening. In March, he said he makes more money from “being Tom Kerridge than being a chef” and that his five restaurants were “making no money at all.” (thecaterer.com) He said higher business costs were pushing menu prices up and called for value-added tax on pubs and restaurants to be cut to 10%. In that climate, his argument was that craft, not virality, is still what builds a chef’s career. (thecaterer.com)
