Five weeks into the competition, Great British Menu headed north of the border. Returning chefs Michael Bremner and Ally McGrath both arrived full guns blazing, having bulldozed newcomer Angela Malik out the way in the weekly heats (not helped, perhaps, by her lumpy scallop ice cream). Neither chef made it to the banquet in 2016, despite Michael scoring full marks across the board for his showstopping fish dish, and it certainly felt like there were points to be proven. But would the chefs’ flavours match their ambition? Could their cooking match Wimbledon champion Andy Murray’s Scottish success?
Having failed to make the judges’ chamber last year, Ally admitted he hadn’t practiced his dishes enough. In this instance of his starter, Halcyon Days, practice did indeed make perfect with the judges praising the colours, balance and even the summery feel. Previous contestants have been marked down for using beetroot with its autumnal connotations, so it’s testament to the lightness of Ally’s dish that it retained the essence of summer. Even his homemade ricotta – a disaster in the weekly cook off – was praised by Andy.
Michael also opted for a vegetarian starter, in fact his Summer Cup Ceviche with Wimble-Gin-22 went a step further, being raw and vegan. The judges thought it skilled, if lacking in the wow factor necessary for the banquet, but criticized his homemade gin. Infusing alcohol with grass from the Wimbledon tennis courts seemed like a lovely idea, but in reality the tasters found it bitter and a bit difficult.
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Great British Menu 2017: Scotland recap