Monday 22^nd May 2017

STARTER: Midsummer

It felt so good to be back in the kitchen!

I definitely felt a lot more comfortable this time round, but definitely didn’t want to appear cocky. Being the one returning to the show has given me an advantage, having done it before I feel like I know how the show works a little more.

But with that there’s a lot more expectations. I feel a lot more pressure to perform, and feel that people expect me to do well this time round because of how well I did last year. I’m under no illusions as to the quality of the other two chefs that I’m up against though. I’ve known both Danny and Josh for years and get on with them really really well. I’ve eaten at both their restaurants and know what strong cooks they are.

Getting only a 7 on the first day was very disappointing. And I was disappointed in myself.

It was definitely a risky dish and I kind of knew it would go one way or the other, but if you don’t take risks, you don’t win right?!…but saying that, in hindsight it really wasn’t one of my better ideas. Having watched the show back last night I realised it probably wasn’t that great, I was actually a little embarrassed. Thats’s the problem with having loads of ideas, you have to decipher the ones that are actually good to run with, and in this case it maybe wasn’t the best one to go with!

It’s really put the pressure on now though, as a 7 is low, the lowest I’ve ever got. Having felt quite relaxed at the start of the day because of my previous experience on the show, I’m now feeling extra determined to crack on, work hard and get those higher scores.

Having Jeremy Lee as the Judge was so exciting. Last year we had Tom Aikens and the style of judging is definitely quite different. Jeremy is so full of energy, and laughter, and massively lightens the mood in the kitchen. I really quite enjoyed chatting to him and enjoyed his company, but he is a hard guy to read, and I’m really at odds as to what he’s thinking.

I felt both Dannys and Josh’s dishes were very tasty. Danny has obviously put a hell of a lot of research and hard work in to his props, so it’s going to be very very interesting to see what he does for the rest of the week. Right now he’s in the lead and he’s definitely the guy to try and beat this week, although I know what Josh is capable of too. So it’s going to be close.

So after a disappointing first day I definitely feel that my competitiveness is coming in to action , and I’m on a mission to get myself in the top spot over the next week.

Although I was on the wrong end of it, it was definitely a fair result last night. But I think I’ve got a cracking fish dish, so the gloves are off!

The Scores:

Danny 9 Josh 8 Tommy 7

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