One of the night’s big winners was Henry Wadsworth, from Le Manoir aux Quat-Saisons, who picked up the award for Royal Academy of Culinary Arts Young Chef of the Year.

Elena Bockshecker, Harrods, won Young Pastry Chef of the Year, while the award for Young Waiter of the Year went to Lewis Hunter from the Gleneagles hotel.

Winners were chosen from the finals that took place over May and June, where candidates were judged over a series of tasks by industry luminaries, chaired by John Williams MBE, executive chef of The Ritz London and chairman of the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts.

Williams, who was the evening’s host said: “I hope that through the Annual Awards of Excellence we can motivate and inspire the industry’s young chefs, pastry chefs and waiters to undertake a career of training first themselves, and then others; and to look outside the workplace to wider industry and opportunities.”

The gala dinner also celebrated the 20 other young chefs, pastry chefs and waiters who took part in the finals and successfully achieved the RACA’s Award of Excellence 2017.These were-
 
KITCHEN:
Olivia Catherine Burt, Fera at Claridge's
Samuel King, The Ritz London
Tom Waters, Bonhams Restaurant
Fergus Wilford, Andre Garrett at Cliveden
 
PASTRY:
Harry Barber, Hakkasan
Alan Holloway, Claridge's
Mathilde Pilaete, Alfred Dunhill
 
SERVICE:
Lauren Chappell, Cromlix Hotel
James Dainton, André Garrett at Cliveden
Piers Gibson-Birch, Luton Hoo Hotel
Karen Gruet, Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons
Ross Hunter, The Gleneagles Hotel
Stefanie Obermayer, The Gleneagles Hotel
Remi Orero, The Greenhouse
Charlotte Poynton, The Three Chimneys
Giuseppe Scudiero, The Ritz London
Antonella Sinisgallo, Roux at the Landau
Alexander Sumerauer, The Ritz London
Gabriele Tarantola, The Ritz London
Thomas Wickens, The Berkeley Hotel