Great British Menu: Sheffield chef behind JÖRO finishes joint third in dessert round of TV cooking competition

Luke French, chef director and culinary mastermind behind the Kelham Island eatery, has wowed the judges on BBC Two’s popular Great British Menu.

He has beaten competition from other talented chefs in the regional heats – including Mark Aisthorpe, chef patron of the Bulls Head at Holymoorside, Derbyshire – to reach the final stages.

Luke appeared on the show last night when he represented the North East and Yorkshire region against other talented chefs representing areas from around the UK.

Each day this week the eight remaining chefs will be marked out of 10 for courses ranging from starter to desert by an expert judging panel that includes Michelin-starred chef Tom Kerridge, restaurateur Nisha Katona and food podcast host and comedian Ed Gamble.

This year’s series is celebrating 100 years of British Broadcasting with contestants tasked to reflect the theme in their cooking. The latest episode saw chefs compete to create the perfect main course.

Luke served up ‘Ma Larkin’s Perfick Sundae’ which was inspired by the early 90s TV show The Darling Buds of May and consisted of strawberry jelly, sponge with white chocolate and hazelnut custard.

Nisha praised Luke for creating some “really clever flavours” and added: “It is fresh, it is summery, it’s fruity.”

Tom added: “The flavours are fantastic.”

Luke finished joint third with fellow chef Sally Abe.

This means his journey on the show has come to an end as the chefs have now been chosen to cook the starter, fish course, main and dessert at a banquet at Alexandra Palace in London tonight where the overall winner will also be announced.

Describing his time on the show, Luke described the kitchen as “tough” but added that complimentary remarks from his fellow chefs for a fish course he cooked in an earlier round “means so much to me.”

He added: “The feedback from my peers is priceless."

You can watch the banquet special on BBC2 tonight at 7.30pm.