The head chef at one of Norwich’s historic venues has been named as a semi-finalist in the National Chef of the Year competition for the third year running.

Marcin Pomierny leads the team at the Maids Head Hotel kitchens, and has reached the more advanced stages of the competition held by the Craft Guild of Chefs. He said: “I have learned a lot in my two semi-final appearances and will do my very best to secure a place in the final for the Maids Head and Norwich. It is very good to be back in the kitchen following lockdown. I hope that many guests will take the opportunity of the Eat Out to Help Out discount to sample my summer a la carte menu.”

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Because of the pandemic instead of competing in a cook off Mr Pomierny has been tasked with submitting a short video presenting a signature dish which sums up his personality and tells his story ‘in a couple of bites’.

He said: “My video features an amuse bouche, ‘summer of the sourdough crisp’, inspired by the summers when I was growing up in Poland. My family went to work on my grandparents’ farm. The work was hard, but my grandmother produced fabulous meals and I particularly remember the wonderful tomatoes that she grew and we picked from the garden and the sourdough bread that she baked every day. “My sourdough crisp features avocado and elderflower tatare, Heritage Norfolk tomatoes, soft white cheese and smoked onion powder.”

The ten finalists will be announced on August 17 and the final cook off will take place at Le Cordon Bleu in London on September 7, with the winner being announced on September 30.