Are you a brilliant young chef in Victoria, NSW or the ACT? Fabulous – this is your moment. Young Chef of the Year, awarded annually by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guides, is now open for applications from the next generation of cooking talent.
The next Young Chef of the Year recipients will be named at the Good Food Guide Awards in Melbourne and Sydney in October. Finalists will also be invited to cook at special Young Chef of the Year showcase dinners in Melbourne and Sydney.
In 2025, Infinity by Mark Best head chef Jen Kwok Lee took home the award for The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide. Meanwhile, The Age crowned Viveik Vinoharan – who won plenty of fans at Cremorne wine bar Lilac Wine – its winner.
Lee is currently leading the Infinity by Mark Best kitchen into its second year of operation. Vinoharan, meanwhile, earned the inaugural head chef gig at Dutch Rules Distilling Co in Mitcham.
Previous winners include influential Australian chefs Phil Wood, Brett Graham, Lauren Eldridge and Andrew McConnell. In more recent years, Victorian winner Saavni Krishnan has gone on to open her own venue, Saadi, with her partner, while NSW winner Luke Bourke is leading the line at Felons Seafood. Eldridge was named last year’s Oceania Cruises Chef of the Year.
To apply, chefs must be under 30 years old; a permanent Australian resident; and based in Victoria, NSW or the ACT. The industry judging panel and Good Food Guide editors are looking for chefs who:
- are fantastic cooks;
- have a social conscience;
- work to better the community;
- lift up their fellow chefs; and
- are keenly interested in learning and improving.
The award is open to chefs working in any section of the kitchen, but they must not be an executive chef or the owner of a restaurant. (Applications from head chefs are accepted if there is also an executive chef in the kitchen.)
The first step is completing an online application before 11.59pm, August 23. Finalists will appear in front of a panel of industry leaders and representatives from the Good Food Guide for face-to-face interviews in the following fortnight.
Access the application form. Questions? Email goodfoodguide@nine.com.au