The Signature Food Festival 2023 in Aberdeen, which is run by the The JEllie Foundation returns this September and November, has announced that Tom Aitkens will make his first Signature appearance. He’ll be joined by Tom Brown and Lisa Goodwin-Allen who are cooking for the festival once again after their debuts at the 2022 event, along with Phil Howard and Glynn Purnell – who mark their third and fourth visits respectively.
Tom Aikens became one of the youngest chefs to win two Michelin stars at the age of just 26. His food emphasises sustainable, high-quality British ingredients executed with creative, technical flair at his intimate experience-led restaurant Muse in Belgravia. Between them the chefs – all regular faces on the Great British Menu and Saturday Morning Kitchen – hold seven Michelin stars and 17 AA Red Rosettes.
The festival, the only one of its kind in Scotland, is the creation of Gillian and Graham Wood, owners of The Chester Hotel and trustees of The JEllie Foundation and it has raised more than £1 million for local children’s charities since its launch in 2017.
Graham says, “The Signature Food Festival is growing in awareness amongst the UK chef fraternity and we’re able each year to attract new, very high-profile names to cook for our diners. The fact that so many much-loved faces like Glynn Purnell, Phil Howard and Atul Kochhar are returning too, year on year, shows we must be doing something right with our approach of inviting the culinary elite to Aberdeen to cook with the finest local, seasonal produce to raise money for good causes.”
Tickets for Signature Autumn 2023 go on general sale on Monday 12 June at 12 noon on the Signature website www.signaturefoodfestival.co.uk.
