A CHEF from Letterston has been name one of the best in the UK after coming third in the Young National Chef of the Year (YNCOTY) competition.

Former Ysgol Penrhyn Dewi and Pembrokeshire College student, George Harding, went up against the best of the best at the finals of the competition, held at the Restaurant Show Olympia, London, earlier this month.

George is currently senior chef de partie at The Atlantic Hotel, Jersey, where he works under the watchful eye of executive chef, Will Holland; recognised by The Good Food Guide as one of its predicted ten most influential chefs of the next decade.

George worked alongside Will at Coast, after impressing him in the kitchens of Pembrokeshire College when he came there to cook as a guest chef.

George has also worked at Tom Kerridge's The Hand and Flowers in Marlow; Raymond Blanc's Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons in Oxford; Wilks restaurant Bristol and in France, all furthering his skill set.

For the Craft Guild of Chefs YNCOTY finals George made canapes of compressed watermelon tartar with nasturtiums and mango gel and old Winchester cheese gougere with fig chutney.

These were followed by man roasted Norwegian cod, salted cod beignets, jersey mussels, mussel bur blanc sauce, jersey rock samphire, hisppi cabbage and sautéed griolle mushrooms for a main course.

Dessert was a Victoria sponge soufflé, jersey raspberry and clotted cream ice cream and jersey autumn bliss raspberries.

George was awarded third place out of the young chefs who had been whittled down to the final ten.

"It was a really good experience and took me completely out of my comfort zone," he said. "It was the first time for me to cook in front of an audience, so that brings its own pressures. But all and all loved the experience.

"The dishes all came together really well on the day of the final and I was really pleased with how they tasted and looked.

"I'm chuffed to bits with third place, as I was competing against some of the best chefs in the UK at the moment."

Also flying the flag for north Pembrokeshire at the competition was former Ysgol y Preseli and Pembrokeshire College student, Sam Everton.

Sam, who now works at Crwst in Cardigan, has had a whirlwind year of competitions, cooking in Russia, France, America and Australia with the WorldSkills, Squad UK before getting don to the final ten for YNCOTY.