IGCAT Expert, Wendy Barrie vividly recalls her experience as a jury member of the European Young Chef Award 2023:

“It was with great pleasure that I accepted an invitation to be on the Judging Panel for the IGCAT European Young Chef 2023 last autumn, hosted by European Region of Gastronomy 2023, Hautes-de-France. With a French pen pal since the year dot, a certain level of understanding French and an enthusiasm for good food, France has always been a desirable destination: from a Grenoble vacation as a child, later hurtling down snowy slopes at Val d’Isere, strolling along the waterfront in Villefranche-sur-Mer and people watching from a Parisian café. What’s not to love? But I had never been to Hautes-de-France, a fascinating region, steeped on the one hand with an industrial past, and on the other, a northern styled Côte d’Azure playground for the rich and famous with glorious architecture to match.”