EURO-TOQUES YOUNG CHEF OF THE YEAR 2025

 The winner of the Euro-Toques Young Chef of the Year Competition presented by La Rousse Foods was announced at a much anticipated gala event in Dublin on October 12th, with David Harte (The Sea Rooms at Kelly's Resort Hotel & Spa, Co Wexford) taking the prestigious title for 2025, while Elizabeth Dunphy (The Bishop's Buttery at Cashel Palace Hotel, Co Tipperary) was declared the inaugural Euro-Toques Rising Pastry Chef of the Year.

Ireland’s premier culinary competition, the Euro-Toques Young Chef of the Year is in a league of its own when it comes to nurturing talent and, since its inception in 1990, has launched the careers of many of our most successful chefs, including Neven Maguire (1994), Gavin McDonagh (1995), Anna Haugh (2002), Peter Everett(2006), Mark Moriarty (2013), Gráinne Mullins (2019) and the current Commissioner General, Conor Halpenny, who took the title in 2017.

Far from being ‘just a cooking competition’, the Young Chef of the Year is an inspired project run by a dedicated group of Euro-Toques members who are carrying the torch for Euro-Toques Ireland founder, Myrtle Allen, and her fellow Irish founding commissioners (John Howard of Le Coq Hardi in Dublin, Declan Ryan of Arbutus Lodge in Cork and Gerry Galvin of Drimcong House in Galway) ‘to preserve Irish culinary heritage by supporting traditional cooking methods and promoting producers of local and seasonal artisan products’. It’s important to remember that, because it's the reason why this is so much more than a cook off. It is in fact an educational journey, taking place over six months each year and with each participant (a professional chef under the age of 28) nominated for the competition by a Euro-Toques member chef.

This year's theme, "Forgotten Foods: Honouring Ireland's Larder," invited the young chefs to reconnect with Ireland's rich culinary heritage by rediscovering ingredients, skills, and traditions that have been overlooked or nearly lost. It was a call to slow down, to cook with intent, and to look to Ireland's fields, waters, and pastures for inspiration. At its heart, the theme embodies the Euro-Toques ethos: respect for Irish food culture, a commitment to sustainability, and creativity that carries tradition forward into the future.
As part of this year's Young Chef of the Year journey, finalists travelled to Tipperary to explore the county's vibrant network of producers and artisans, including The Apple Farm near Cahir, Tipperary Boutique Distillery, Cashel Farmhouse Cheesemakers, and Brookfield Farm on Lough Derg, a model of innovation rooted in sustainability.
The finalists also travelled to Merlin Labron-Johnson’s farm-to-table restaurant Osip in Somerset, to experience a menu that evolves daily in response to the land.

The talented finalists competing in this year's finals at Dublin Cookery School were David Harte (The Sea Rooms at Kelly's, Co Wexford), Joseph Quane (Allta, Dublin), Maaike Venema (The Bishop's Buttery at Cashel Palace, Tipperary), and Nell McCarthy (dede, West Cork). Each was challenged to create two original dishes featuring rack and belly of pork from Winetavern Farm (Co Wicklow), heritage potatoes from Ballymakenny Farm (Co Louth), and Sissy Red Irish apples from The Apple Farm (Co Tipperary) – ingredients chosen to reflect Ireland's rich regional larder.

Dishes
The finalists were judged across three key areas: execution and work practice, taste and flavour, and presentation. Mentored by Chris Fulham, head chef of The Sea Rooms at Kelly's (and a forner competitor), David Harte impressed the elite judging panel of leading chefs with two outstanding dishes that celebrated the very best of Irish produce - a standout main course of Winetavern farm pork, potato cake, black pudding, cauliflower, blackberry and black garlic with a side dish of Mayan gold, cabbage, buttermilk and a dessert of Sissy red apples, skyr, honey and oats, showcasing remarkable flair, creativity, and execution.

And this year Euro-Toques Ireland also announced Elizabeth Dunphy (The Bishop's Buttery, Cashel Palace) as the winner of the inaugural Rising Pastry Chef of the Year Competition, presented by La Rousse Foods, which took place on Monday, 29 September, at Crumlin College, Dublin. This landmark new competition was created to celebrate and nurture Ireland's emerging pastry talent - shining a light on creativity, craftsmanship, and the future of Irish patisserie.

The theme, "Classics Reimagined Using Irish Ingredients," invited pastry chefs to reinterpret timeless desserts through a distinctly Irish lens, honouring the Euro-Toques values of provenance, seasonality, and integrity. Hero ingredients were Sissy Red Irish apples from The Apple Farm, Co. Tipperary and fresh Irish blackberries and, challenged to innovate with local ingredients while honouring pastry tradition, six finalists from across the country competed in a demanding final that tested precision, technical mastery, and imagination.

The Rising Pastry Chef of the Year finalists were Joice Da Silva (The Merrion Hotel), Elizabeth Dunphy (The Bishop's Buttery, Cashel Palace), Samuel Lynch (Coppinger, Dublin), MollyRose Maher (Ballynahinch Castle, Connemara), Aengus Moloney (Aniar, Galway), and Hilary Quinn (Ballymaloe House, Co Cork) – each mentored by leading Irish pastry professionals and judged by a panel of esteemed chefs from Ireland an beyond, including Euro-Toques's Conor Halpenny (Euro-Toques Ireland), Gareth Mullins (Anantara The Marker, Dublin).

The winners of both competitions - 2025 Euro-Toques Young Chef of the Year, Davide Harte, and Rising Pastry Chef of the Year, Elizabeth Dunphy – were officially announced on Sunday, 12 October 2025, at the InterContinental Hotel, Dublin, where head chef and Euro-Toques member Alberto Rossi and a lineup of guest chefs. celebrated the very best of Irish cuisine with a Euro-Toques Gala Dinner that highlighted top Irish producers including: Ballymakenny Farm (Co Louth), Coolea Cheese (Co Cork), Goatsbridge Trout and Highbank Orchards (Co Kilkenny), Kelly Oysters (Co Galway), Lough Neagh Smoked Eel (Co. Antrim), The Apple Farm (Co. Tipperary), Velvet Cloud (Co Mayo), and Winetavern Farm (Co Wicklow). Cheeses by Ballylisk of Armagh, Cashel Farmhouse Cheese, Leitrim Hill Creamery and The Lost Valley Dairy were served with Sliabh Aughty Honey and Tim's Table Lavosh Crackers. while wines were generously provided by James Nicholson’s JN Wines, Crossgar, Co Down.
For more details visit: https://euro-toques.ie/

IMAGES

1 Group: Euro-Toques Young Chef winner & judges (L-R) Judges Mark Donald, (The Glenturret Lalique Restaurant, Scotland), Gareth Mullins (Anantara The Marker Dublin), Christina Blevins (Row on 5, London), John Kelly (Lady Helen Restaurant at Mount Juliet) and Conor Halpenny (Square) with winner David Harte of The Sea Rooms at Kelly's

1A Winner Euro-Toques Young Chef of the Year 2025, David Harte of The Sea Rooms at Kelly's, Co Wexford

1B Winner Euro-Toques Rising Pastry Chef of the Year Elizabeth Dunphy, Bishop's Buttery, Cashel Palace, Co Tipperary

2 Group: Euro-Toques Young Chef of the Year finalists & judges. Back row (L-R) Mark Donald, (The Glenturret Lalique Restaurant in Scotland), Gareth Mullins (Anantara The Marker Dublin), Christina Blevins (Row on 5, London), John Kelly (Lady Helen Restaurant at Mount) and Conor Halpenny (Square) with Joseph Quane (Allta), Nell McCarthy (dede) Maaike Venema (The Bishop's Buttery at Cashel Palace) and David Harte (The Sea Rooms at Kelly's).\

3.Group: Finalists and judges of the 2025 Euro-Toques Rising Pastry Chef of the Year Competition, presented by La Rousse Foods, held at Crumlin College Dublin. (L–R) Back row:judges Paula Stakelum Ashford Castle; Darren Hogarty, Chapter One by Mickael Viljanen; Gareth Mullins, Anantara The Marker, Dublin; Conor Halpenny, Square Dundalk; Gráinne Mullins, Grá Chocolates; Andrew Ryan, Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, London. (L–R) Front row: MollyRose Maher, Ballynahinch Castle; Samuel Lynch, Coppinger; Aengus Moloney, Aniar; Hilary Quinn, Ballymaloe House Elizabeth Dunphy, Bishop's Buttery, Cashel Palace; Joice Da Silva, The Merrion Hotel.

4 Group: Rising Pastry Chef finalists & judges (L-R) Back row: judges Paula Stakelum Ashford Castle; Darren Hogarty, Chapter One by Mickael Viljanen; Gareth Mullins, Anantara The Marker, Dublin; Conor Halpenny, Square Dundalk; Gráinne Mullins, Grá Chocolates; Andrew Ryan, Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, London. (L–R) Front row: MollyRose Maher, Ballynahinch Castle; Samuel Lynch, Coppinger; Aengus Moloney, Aniar; Hilary Quinn, Ballymaloe House Elizabeth Dunphy, Bishop's Buttery, Cashel Palace; Joice Da Silva, The Merrion Hotel. Paula Stakelum Ashford Castle, Darren Hogarty, Chapter One by Mickael Viljanen, Gareth Mullins, Anantara The Marker, Dublin, Elizabeth Dunphy, Bishop's Buttery, Cashel Palace, Andrew Ryan (Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, London), Gráinne Mullins (Grá Chocolates), Conor Halpenny, Square Dundalk;

Pictures credits: Possa Media