North East Scotland Chef & Restaurant of the Year (NESCRY)

North East Scotland Chef & Restaurant of the Year celebrates and awards the region's most talented chefs and hospitality businesses, giving them the recognition they truly deserve.

Hospitality Training and Culinary Competitions in the North East of Scotland

From humble beginnings, our culinary competitions have grown in prestige and significance, helping to shape the careers of many talented chefs in the North East of Scotland. Introduced by our hospitality training organisation, these competitions have not only become a highlight of the local culinary scene but have also played a pivotal role in launching the careers of several Scottish Chef of the Year alumni.

Through years of dedication and innovation, our competitions have provided aspiring chefs with a platform to showcase their skills, creativity, and passion. The exposure gained from participating has opened doors to incredible career opportunities, and many of our past competitors have gone on to achieve great success within the industry.

We are proud of how far these competitions have come, and we remain committed to nurturing the next generation of culinary talent while celebrating the art of cooking in Scotland.

Here’s why it’s important:

  • Celebrating the best of the North-East of Scotland. Putting Aberdeenshire’s finest chefs and venues in the spotlight. Shining a light on local talent to get the recognition they deserve

  • Driving innovation in Aberdeenshire’s kitchens,  inspiring chefs and venues to push boundaries and set new standards, inspiring others in the industry.

  • It’s a way to highlight what’s possible in the culinary world, encouraging venues & chefs to step up their game and can lead to national competition success

  • Uniting Aberdeenshire’s culinary talent, where chefs and hospitality connect, collaborate, and grow together.

  • Winning or even just participating can open big career opportunities

  • Where growth is always on the menu, inspiring chefs and venues to keep learning, leading, and levelling up.

Chef of the Year

Current competition

Chef of the Year 2025

This year's competition took place on Monday the 26th of May 2025, with the Awards Dinner taking place that evening at the Marcliffe at Pitfodels, Aberdeen.

Chef of the year 2026

Watch this space for 2026 chef of the year going live

If you would like an application form for Chef of the Year, Young Chef of the Year or Seafood Chef of the Year, please click the link below to download a copy. Please make sure you download the correct guidelines for your chosen category. 

Closing date for applications is the 31st January 2026, with finalists being notified after. All finalists will be invited to an informal finalists seminar with the date to be confirmed into early 2026, which will be delivered by Orry Shand, Executive Chef at Entier Ltd, Scottish Culinary Team Captain, and the 2025 National Chef of the Year.

The Venues Award categories will be open early 2026

Public voting links will be live in 2026

The Restaurant of the Year and Casual Dining Award categories are now open for voting! Establishments will no longer be required to 'enter' the competition, we will rely solely on the public voting for their chosen establishment. The closing date for voting for the Restaurant and Casual Dining categories is Friday 28th February. The top 5 placed venues will be contacted after this date.  The links are below for voting.