ACE Ready, Steady, Cook 2026: Celebrating Talent, Creativity and the Future of Foodservice
There was plenty of heat in the kitchen at ACE Ready, Steady, Cook 2026, as 24 talented chefs from 12 leading foodservice companies came together for an evening of competition, creativity, and outstanding food.
Held on Thursday 24 September 2026 at Pillars Restaurant, University of West London, Ready, Steady, Cook once again demonstrated exactly what makes our industry so special: talented people, great teamwork, a willingness to push creative boundaries, and, of course, some exceptional cooking.
From the moment the chefs entered the kitchen to the announcement of our winners, the atmosphere was fantastic. The competition was fierce, the standard incredibly high, and the camaraderie between the teams was wonderful to see.
And after an exciting evening, there could only be one winner…
Congratulations to Pinch Food – our 2026 champions!
A huge congratulations goes to Pinch Food, represented by Chris Gidden and Sam Cootes, who took 1st Place and were crowned the winners of ACE Ready, Steady, Cook 2026.
The pair impressed our judges and walked away with the coveted Ready, Steady, Cook title after a brilliant performance in the kitchen.
Congratulations also go to BaxterStorey, represented by Stan Pisak and Patty Dankowska, who secured 2nd Place, and Graysons, represented by Chris Pinner and Adam Osan, who completed our podium in 3rd Place.
With such a high standard across all 12 teams, securing a place in the top three was a fantastic achievement.
12 teams, 24 chefs, and one exciting challenge
This year's competition brought together chefs from across the foodservice industry, with each company represented by a team of two.
We were delighted to welcome
TNS Catering – Felix Rayment and Jimmy Fairman;
Bennett Hay – Ottavio Salderini and Tyler Mann;
Gather & Gather – Nathan Jones and Lee Fox;
BaxterStorey – Stan Pisak and Patty Dankowska;
The Good Eating Company – Giancomo Ferrera and Ben Chisolm;
Convene Hospitality – Aaron Clark and Stefano Costa;
Vacherin – Vince Smith and Alex Barnes;
Searcys – Clifton Dsouza and Marcus Thiyagarajah;
BM Caterers – Sam Browne-Swinburne and Charley Samualson;
Graysons – Chris Pinner and Adam Osan;
Thomas & Tate – Megan Baldock and Logan Lloyd; and
Pinch Food – Chris Gidden and Sam Cootes.
Every chef brought something different to the competition, and we would like to congratulate all 24 for embracing the challenge and producing an incredible evening of food and entertainment.
Ready… Steady… Cook!
And it certainly was a challenge.
Teams were tasked with producing both a savoury dish and a dessert. For their main course, duck took centre stage, accompanied by seasonal vegetables and ingredients selected from the larder. The chefs had only a short time to review the ingredients and formulate their plan before the competition began.
For dessert, teams were allowed to demonstrate their own style and creativity, designing a dish incorporating seasonal fruit and selected larder ingredients. Then came the pressure: just 60 minutes to cook and present four plates of both their savoury dish and dessert to the judges.
Watching the kitchen transform once the clock started was one of the highlights of the evening. Ingredients were selected, pans hit the heat, and the teams quickly settled into their individual plans.
But Ready, Steady, Cook isn't simply about what appears on the plate. The judges were looking at everything from teamwork, creativity, and seasonality to presentation, flavour, cleanliness, wastage, and how effectively each team managed its competition time.
It created a genuine test of the skills required in a professional kitchen.
Our judges had a difficult job
With so much talent on display, we certainly didn't make life easy for our judges!
A huge thank you goes to Kelly Cullen and Russell Bateman, who gave their time and expertise to judge this year's competition.
Kelly is one of the UK's leading pastry chefs, with experience across several Michelin-starred kitchens, and was named British Culinary Federation Pastry Chef of the Year in 2025.
Russell's career has seen him work alongside some of the industry's most respected chefs, including Nico Ladenis, Marcus Wareing, Marc Veyrat, Eric Chavot, Aiden Byrne and Daniel Clifford. He was also crowned National Chef of the Year in 2014 and represented London & the Southeast on Great British Menu in 2016.
Reflecting on the evening, Russell summed up the quality of the competition perfectly:
“It was a great night and fantastic to see so many wonderful chefs cooking at the ACE RSC competition. The standard and creativity was fantastic. We tasted some truly delicious dishes. It goes to show that Food Service is in a very healthy place.”Russell Bateman, ACE Ready, Steady, Cook 2026 Judge
We couldn't agree more.
The standard of cooking demonstrated not only the talent already working within foodservice, but also the creativity, passion, and professionalism that continue to drive our industry forward.
Thank you to our fantastic hosts
Events like Ready, Steady, Cook simply couldn't happen without a brilliant venue and team behind them.
Our heartfelt thanks go to Pillars Restaurant at the University of West London for hosting us once again and providing the professional kitchen environment needed to put our chefs through their paces.
We would particularly like to thank Michael Coaker and Laura Pavel, along with the entire venue team, for looking after ACE, our chefs, judges, sponsors, and guests so well throughout the event.
From preparing the kitchen and supporting the competition to helping everything run smoothly throughout the evening, your hospitality and support were hugely appreciated.
Thank you to our sponsors
We are also incredibly grateful to the generous sponsors who supported ACE Ready, Steady, Cook 2026:
Evolve Group Ltd, Gressingham Foods, County Supplies, Vegetarian Express, and Belazu.
Your support plays an important part in enabling ACE to bring the industry together through events such as Ready, Steady, Cook.
Gressingham's duck provided the centrepiece of the main challenge, while the competition larder gave our chefs access to an extensive selection of ingredients, including Belazu pastes, alongside fruit, vegetables, grains, pulses, and other essentials.
Thank you for getting behind ACE, our chefs, and the wider foodservice community.
More than a competition
Ready, Steady, Cook may have a competitive edge – and everyone certainly wanted to win – but the evening represented something much bigger.
It brought people from across the industry together in one place. It created an opportunity to discover new talent, reconnect with colleagues, meet new people, and celebrate everything exciting about foodservice.
Once the cooking stopped and the judging was complete, the evening continued with plenty of conversation, networking, and celebration.
That sense of community is at the heart of ACE.
We want to create opportunities for people working throughout the industry to connect, learn, share ideas, develop relationships, and celebrate the incredible people who make foodservice what it is.
Ready, Steady, Cook 2026 delivered all of that – with a healthy dose of competition thrown in!
Until next time…
To Pinch Food, congratulations once again on becoming our ACE Ready, Steady, Cook 2026 champions.
To BaxterStorey and Graysons, congratulations on your well-deserved podium finishes.
And to every chef, company, sponsor, judge, guest, and member of the team who helped make the evening possible: thank you.
Ready, Steady, Cook may be over for another year, but there is plenty more to come from ACE.
Don't miss the next ACE event
Want to be the first to hear about upcoming ACE events, industry news, awards, and opportunities?
And if you'd like to get even more involved with the ACE community, why not become an ACE member? Membership provides access to additional benefits and discounts while helping you connect with people from across the foodservice and hospitality industry.
Subscribe, get involved, and make sure you never miss an ACE event.
See you at the next one!
Comments