The trainees reach the final hurdle as they prepare for service at the chef’s own Michelin-starred restaurant, Le Gavroche, with 50 leading figures from the industry booked in for a special lunch. Before the final challenge, Michel sends the group to work with his father Albert to help him decide which two have shown the most potential and should be awarded the life-changing scholarships.source:LocateTv.com
As the competition gets to the closing stages, the remaining contestants face one of their biggest challenges yet. They are divided into three teams to cater for three VIP guests – stylist Gok Wan, singer-songwriter Sophie Ellis-Bextor and garden designer Diarmuid Gavin. Each personality has different menu requests and, with Michel Roux himself doing the cooking, the trainees are under pressure to achieve excellence.source:LocateTv.com
The trainees head to Paris to run service at Lasserre, a two Michelin-starred restaurant that prides itself on its formal standards and the knowledge of its wine waiters. Michel takes the group on a detour to Reims to learn about champagne with master sommelier Ronan Sayburn, before visiting a leading hospitality college in the French capital to have lessons how to carve duck breast, ladle soup and elegantly pour sauce.source:LocateTv.com
The chef and restaurateur sets up a temporary restaurant in the surroundings of Kensington Roof Gardens in west London and designs a special menu to test the skills of the remaining trainees. With 60 demanding diners attending the meal, the contestants are taught to carve and fillet cuts of meat, shown how to prepare crepes Suzette, and also become acquainted with the world of top-of-the-range wines.source:LocateTv.com
The trainees are taken to an exclusive country house hotel in Dartmoor, where two of the hopefuls throw themselves into meeting and greeting the high-paying guests, dealing with 24-hour room service and the challenges of formal dining. However, the demanding customers and opulent surroundings force the rest of the group to question whether a career as front-of-house staff really is for them.source:LocateTv.com
The restaurateur tests his trainees’ attention to detail by putting them in charge of a wedding reception at a brasserie in the affluent Cheshire countryside. With more than 70 guests expecting a highly personal level of service, the aspiring service professionals find their concentration stretched to the limit – while also catering for regular customers on the restaurant’s second floor.source:LocateTv.com
The chef and restaurateur takes his eight trainees for a busy breakfast shift at one of the oldest ‘greasy spoon’ cafes in London to teach them the importance of ensuring customers are keen to return. The hopefuls also experience work at an award-winning curry house in Birmingham, but a lack of commitment by some causes stress for owner Raj Rana.source:LocateTv.com
The chef and restaurateur trains eight young people, none of whom has previously considered a career a waiter, to become front-of-house experts, and at the end of the project two of the participants will be awarded scholarships with the Academy of Food and Wine. Michel begins by showing the trainees the exacting standards of service at a Michelin-starred restaurant, before making them work at a busy establishment during a Saturday night.source:LocateTv.com