While it feels slightly unnatural to select and celebrate people based on their gender, when we started the Female Chef Awards, we did so to readdress the balance. You see, as with many professions across the UK, women are hugely underrepresented in the world of cheffing.
In 2017 The Office for National Statistics reported that just 17% of chef positions were filled by women, meaning under a fifth of chef roles across the UK are held by females. Fewer women in chef positions means fewer role models for girls to look up to, and similarly there aren’t many female faces on cooking shows and food television series either. In our conversations with female chefs, another common theme often emerges, and that’s the issues surrounding childcare and maternity leave. Many women we’ve spoken to think more needs to be done to allow for flexible working in an industry which has historically demanded gruelling shifts and irregular working patterns from its staff. While not every woman will want or need childcare throughout their working life, a work-life balance has to become part of the conversation if we want to truly make kitchens a rewarding place to work.
With these challenges in mind, we want to shine a light on the exceptional talent we are lucky to have here in the UK. It might seem like an ambitious goal but we're hopeful that this will help to inspire the next generation of cooks, so that in the next cohort of chefs there’ll be equal representation for women and no need for lists such as ours. Each year we champion amazing chefs (who just happen to be women!) doing incredible things for the industry, crowning one person the overall winner at the end of each year.
So, while we don’t want to seem tokenistic, we do want to champion women who are doing incredible things in the hospitality sector (and, spoiler alert, there are so, so many). All the chefs we’ve chosen are at the top of their game, flying the flag for incredible cooking and exceptional standards.
Below you’ll find more details on the interviews and awards we’ve previously covered, as well as how to nominate a chef for our awards this year!
How do we judge the AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year Awards?
This year, after thoroughly reviewing and considering all the nominations, our esteemed panel of chefs and experts will take the lead in determining the winner of the AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year Awards 2024.
Included in the judging panel (below, clockwise from top left) are Pete Dreyer (Restaurant & Venues Editor at SquareMeal), Laurence Alamanos (Export Manager at AYALA), Elise Mather (Brand Manager at AYALA), Ellie Donnell (Managing Editor at SquareMeal), Sally Abe (Executive Chef at The Pem) and Roberta Hall-McCarron (Head Chef and owner of Eleanore, The Little Chartroom and Ardfern).
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About the AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year Awards
Our Female Chef of the Year Awards launched in 2018 to champion women in hospitality. Each year, we scour the country to come up with a list of top female chefs. We look at all sorts of criteria, from creativity and innovation to training and style.
AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year 2024 Shortlist
This year's shortlist covers chefs all over the UK, including the chef patron of one of the best gastropubs in the country, a young Roux Scholar cooking at an elite three Michelin star restaurant, and the first black woman to win a Michelin star in the UK.
Adriana Cavita, Cavita, London
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Adriana's restaurant Cavita is one of London's most exciting Mexican spots, pushing the boundaries of modern Mexican food. We talk to her about the nightmare of visa issues, which kept her out of the UK for almost nine months after the launch of her eponymous restaurant.
Read the interview: Adriana Cavita
Harriet Mansell, Lilac, Dorset
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Harriet Mansell's career has taken her from a three-month stint at Noma to a year as a private chef for the Murdoch family. Now firmly rooted in Dorset, she has turned wine bar and restaurant Lilac into one of the best in the country.
Read the interview: Harriet Mansell
Adejoké Bakare, Chishuru, London
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We talk to Joké Bakare about her incredible 2024, leading the way at Chishuru - one of London's most dynamic, distinctive restaurants - and becoming the first black woman to win a Michelin star in the UK.
Read the interview: Adejoké Bakare
April Lily Partridge, The Ledbury, London
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Roux Scholar and soux chef at three Michelin-starred The Ledbury in Notting Hill, April Lily Partridge is killing it at the very top of the game. We caught up to discuss her journey so far, from battling with imposter syndrome to inspiring mentors.
Read the interview: April Lily Partridge
Stosie Madi, The Parkers Arms, Lancashire
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Stosie was born in Senegal and grew up in The Gambia, before political turmoil forced her to leave. Her journey brought her to Lancashire's quiet Ribble Valley, where she established The Parkers Arms - one of the very best gastropubs in the country, blending her wide range of West African, French, British and Lebanese influences.
Read the interview: Stosie Madi
Previous Female Chef Award winners
Looking to find out more on the women we've heroed as our top-class female chefs? Scroll down to learn more about previous winners like Sally Abe in 2021, Skye Gyngell in 2019, and industry icon Angela Hartnett, who was given our first ever Female Chef title in 2018.
Roberta Hall-McCarron: 2023 AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year
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Hall-McCarron’s Eleanore, Ardfern and The Little Chartroom are the gold standard of the Scottish capital. We chatted to her about Edinburgh's burgeoning restaurant scene and how to run two restaurants as a new parent.
Read the interview
Lisa Goodwin-Allen: 2022 AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year
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Northcote chef Lisa Goodwin-Allen talks influences, inspirations and the importance of developing the next generation of chefs. Read the interview.
Sally Abe: 2021 AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year
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Our 2021 Best Female Chef winner shares her experiences of Michelin-starred kitchens, and some advice for young chefs. Read the interview.
Skye Gyngell: 2019 AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year
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Skye talks biodynamic farming in England, avoiding food wastage and eliminating cling film and reusable bottles. Read the interview.
Angela Hartnett: 2018 AYALA SquareMeal Female Chef of the Year
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The Murano patron chef tells us about working hideous hours, the importance of nurturing talent and being the only woman in the kitchen at Gordon Ramsay's nineties restaurant Aubergine. Read the interview.