The Trustees and Judges of the annual Gold Service Scholarship have completed the first round of assessments in their search to discover the 2020 Scholar, which will be announced on 12 February 2020.
Entrants from the hospitality industry aged 22-28 applied to the Scholarship, and 92 candidates proceeded to the Quarter Final stage, which was held over two days on 26 October at The Langham Hotel and 28 October at Hotel Café Royal.
After a series of interviews and practical tests for both service skills and food and drink knowledge, the Semi Finalists have been named, with backgrounds as diverse as the Royal Household, multi Michelin-starred restaurants, the top tier catering provider, small independent restaurants and hotels, the Royal Air Force, five star hotels across the UK, and a Premier League football club.
The Semi Finalist list is as follows:
- ALESSANDRO ABBATE Brown’s Hotel
- HARRY ADAIR The Royal Household
- LEWIS ALLPORT Middleton Lodge Estate
- ALESSANDRO APRILE Hotel Café Royal
- REMY BABEN Wild Honey St James
- ROMEO BISACCHI Caractère Restaurant
- KAROLINA BOCHNIAK BaxterStorey
- CLAUDIO BOSIO The Waterside Inn
- CAROLINE CARTER BaxterStorey
- JOAO PAULO MARTINS CASTRO The Langham Hotel
- HARRY CHAMPION Tottenham Hotspur Football Stadium
- ANDREA CICCONI MNKY HSE Restaurant and Lounge
- RUPERT CRICK Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons
- GIULIA D’ANGELO Le Gavroche
- MARCO DE SIMONE Royal Garden Hotel
- GIORDANO DI PRATA The Dorchester Hotel London
- ANTHONY DI STASI Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
- TOMMY ENRIGHT Rosewood London
- ALESSIA FALCO The Savoy Grill
- ELIZABETH FORKUOH Strathearn Restaurant, Gleneagles Hotel
- MARIANGEL FRANCHY The Vineyard Hotel and Spa
- LAUREN FRID Bar Boulud, Mandarin Oriental London
- GRETA GABOR The Capital Hotel NICHOLAS
- GEORGOULAKIS Elystan Street Restaurant
- CLEMENT GOSSELIN The Connaught Hotel
- MORAG HAMILTON Royal Air Force
- PATRICK HEALY The Berkeley Hotel
- LEWIS HUNTER Strathearn Restaurant, Gleneagles Hotel
- STEPHEN KELLY The Royal Household
- RYAN KENYON The Oxford Blue
- ANDREA LA COGNATA The Fat Duck
- MATTIA LAUNECH The Game Bird at The Stafford London
- CALVIN LUONG Wigmore Hall Restaurant
- MICHAEL MAFFEY Hide
- MATTIA MARCELLI Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester
- ANDREIA MONTEIRO MacDonald Randolph Hotel
- ALESSANDRO MONTRE Wild Honey St James
- ANDREA NUNINGER GIULIANO PAOLINI Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons
- VALENTINA PIRRI Davies and Brook, Claridge’s
- OLIVER RIDGE The Fordwich Arms
- ANDREW SHORTEN The Foyer and Reading Room at Claridge’s
- BEATRICE SORBARA The Goring Hotel
- DAVID SZCZUCKI Number One Restaurant at the Balmoral
- KAYLEIGH THOROGOOD L’Enclume
- MICHELE TOTO The Ritz London
- ALBERTO VEGLIO The Northall Restaurant, Corinthia London
Commenting on the exceptionally high standard of entrants for the 2020 Scholarship, Edward Griffiths, Trustee and Chairman of the Judges, stated: “Each year, I am impressed by the enthusiasm, talent and dedication from the candidates. We’ve seen many new contenders, as well as some who have entered in previous years and returned for a second time, keen to polish their skills and benefit from the experience of networking with their industry colleagues. It is hugely encouraging to me, and to my fellow Trustees and Judges, that there is such passion among the young candidates.”
Current 2019 Scholar Karen Cross, from Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, is full of praise for her experiences during the competition and since her win in February 2019. She explained: “Not only have I made many new industry friends, but I have broadened my front-of house skills, including on the wine side, with visits to S A Prum vineyard in Mosel and to Laurent-Perrier in Champagne, as well as passing the WSET 2. I also attended a tailored course in Lausanne at the École Hôtelière with the 2019 Finalists, sponsored by the Lord Forte Foundation, where we focused on restaurant management with a fascinating emphasis on the financial side of restaurant operations.”
The 47 Semi Finalists will now proceed to the next stage of the competition, which will be held on 25 November at Rosewood London, where the Finalists (eight individuals) will be chosen. The Final testing will be held at Corinthia London on 13 January 2020, followed by the Gala Awards Ceremony on 12 February 2020 at The Berkeley, where the new 2020 Scholar will be announced.
H&C News would like to congratulate all 47 finalists and wish them the best for the next stage of the competition.