TUCO Competitions gives university caterers the opportunity to showcase their skills and talents as well as a chance for spectators to see them live in action. The event involved two days of competition, networking and collaboration of chefs, baristas and bar tenders from across the TUCO membership.

In the 2025 edition of the competition there were 113 competitors, which was an increase on last year. This year there were 24% more member institutions taking part across the competitions.

Amongst the staple challenges such as Barista Skills, Seafood Skills and Mixology, new for this year was the Sandwich Challenge where chefs were tasked with producing one hot and one cold sandwich.

Harry Long-Maclennan from Liverpool Hope University received Best in Class in the sandwich category. He said: “Every time you finish a competition you never know how you’ve done, but I’m absolutely buzzing. I think I went for a slightly different flavour profile than the other competitors – I have a background in Middle Eastern cuisine so wanted to bring that in. I also made my own bread.”

It was a night to remember for Andy Cornall from the University of Leeds who won Best in Class for the Love British Food Challenge and the Seafood Skills Challenge.

Speaking about the Love British Food Challenge, he explained: “Everything I used in the dish came from within a five-mile radius of where I live. It was local ingredients start to finish and really represents a taste of Yorkshire.

“I knew I’d executed my dish well, but the competition was at a massively high standard this year so I’m made up with the win. I’ve really enjoyed my experience at the TUCO Competitions as they push you out of your comfort zone, which progresses you as a chef.”

For the second year in a row Joseph Latham and Ashley Podgers from the University of Leicester emerged victorious in the Chefs’ Challenge. Former School Chef of the Year (SCOTY) winner Tom Armstrong, who is now head chef at the University of Huddersfield, achieved a bronze medal in this category alongside his sous chef Peter Baren.

Amanda Pettingill, TUCO chair, commented: “The talent and skills on show at the TUCO Competitions gets better and better every year, and it was great to see the level of support for the competitors which made for a brilliant atmosphere.

“Congratulations to all the winners, and a huge thank you to all our sponsors who helped make the event a huge success – Brakes, Britvic, Cafeology, LWC, Nisbets, Real Wrap Co and Steelite International.”

The University of Warwick offered a one hour campus tour to showcase its various catering outlets to the universities chefs and caterers attending the event. There was an exhibition with 33 suppliers including Unox, Brakes, Unilever, Quorn and McCain Foods.  

The gala dinner raised almost £1,500 for the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation. The Foundation was set up by Nadim and Tanya Ednan-Laperouse following the death of their daughter Natasha. The duo want to prevent and eradicate allergic disease, starting with food allergy, and creating a world that is safe for all individuals. 

New for 2025, all the competitors were competing under one roof and every competitors was upgraded to stay on hotels on site.

A new grading system was introduced allowing multiple bronze, silver and gold winners if they met the standard with one person being named the ‘Best in Class’ for each of the eight competition categories.

Full set of results for 2025 TUCO Competitions:

Barista Skills: A live 15-minute competition producing four espressos, four milk or milk alternative drinks and four espresso-based, non-alcoholic specialty drinks.

Bronze:

• Alejandra Rodriguez – Imperial College London
• Brandon Morrison – University of Bath *Best Signature Drink*

Silver:

• Maddie Jordan-Lee – St Mary’s University
• George Mitea – University of Edinburgh

Gold:

• Kelan Simpson – University of Bristol
• Immacolata Venditto – Cardiff University *Best in Class*

Best Burger Challenge: Competitors had 45 minutes to produce two portions with a twist on the recognised burger offer, using any main filling and ingredients: meat, fish, vegetarian or vegan.

Bronze:

• Nick Walker – University of Birmingham
• Mattie Crooks – University of East Anglia
• Federica Laudani – University of Exeter
• Monica Dragan – University of Glasgow

Silver:

• Duncan Swan – University of Glasgow

Gold:

• Attila Fejes – Liverpool Hope University *Best in Class*

Chefs’ Challenge: The Chefs' Challenge is for a team of two chefs challenged to cook a three-course meal of two covers in two hours. This year, chefs created their menu in advance using a specified food cost budget for the entire menu.

Bronze:

• Pedro Da Gama & Newton Dias – Imperial College London
• Neil Finnigan & Justin Pilkington – Liverpool Hope University
• Chris Bowes & Lewis Huggins – Southampton University
• Dan Lawrence & Steve Sadler – University of East Anglia
• Tom Armstrong & Peter Baren – University of Huddersfield
• Ian Litchfield & Raff Stravino – University of Nottingham

Silver:

• Robert Bates & Gary Griffiths – University of Birmingham
• Janet Szypillo & Nick Denning – University of Exeter

Gold:

• Aaron Tong & Rob Hargreaves – University of Leeds
• Joseph Latham & Ashley Podgers – University of Leicester *Best in Class*

Love British Food: The Love British Food challenge is to deliver two portions of a plated main course using a supplied British protein with suitable garnish and accompaniments. Competitor had 45 minutes to produce two portions of the dish.

Bronze:

• Robert McQueen – Strathclyde University
• Mark Pilling – University of Birmingham
• Richard Thomas-Still – University of Exeter

Silver:

• Pedro Da Gama – Imperial College London
• Neil Finnigan – Liverpool Hope University
• Kevin Whitcher – Southampton University

Gold:

• Andy Cornall – University of Leeds *Best in Class*

Mixology: Competitors produced two identical serves of: a signature cocktail, a mocktail using a set list of ingredients (NEW), and a cocktail from a pre-published list of eight classic cocktails.

Bronze:

• Petruta-Lacramioara Gisca – Imperial College London
• Bianca Ciobanu – Imperial College London
• Bharath Kumar – King’s College London

Silver:

• Declan Sloan – Ayrshire College
• Soumyarup Talukdar – King’s College London
• Natasha Vahey – University of Birmingham

Gold:

• Peter Kolcun – University of Bristol
• Nicolas Berasain – University of St Andrews *Best in Class* *Best Signature Drink*

Sandwich Challenge: Competitors were given 30-minutes to produce one hot and one cold sandwich, served plated and garnished appropriately.

Bronze:

• Maddie Selley – King’s College London
• Nicky Stanbury – University of Exeter
• Duncan Swan – University of Glasgow
• Harry Long-Maclennan – Liverpool Hope University  *Best in Class*

Seafood Skills: Competitors had 45 minutes to produce two portions of a main seafood dish.

Bronze:

• Justin Pilkington – Liverpool Hope University
• Nick Wright – Southampton University
• Francesca Sicuso – University of Bristol

Silver:

Andy Cornall – University of Leeds *Best in Class*

Vegan Challenge: Competitors were tasked with producing a plated vegan dish that will appeal to vegans, vegetarians and meat eaters alike.

Bronze:

• Ben Dawney – University of Cambridge
• Richard Thomas-Still – University of Exeter

Silver:

Harry Long-Maclennan – Liverpool Hope University

Angeline Sharp – Cardiff University *Best in Class*