Northern Ireland Judging Great British Menu

It's Judgment Day on Great British Menu, as newcomer Tommy Heaney...

No disrespect, mate, but I'm looking to go all the way.

..goes head-to-head with returning chef Eddie Attwell.

I'm not here to show them jokes. I'm here to show them good food.

..for the chance to represent Northern Ireland

in next week's national finals.

When it comes to the end of the competition,

-I'll shake your hand.

-That's it.

The prize - to cook at a glorious taste of summer banquet,

held in honour of 140 years

of the iconic Wimbledon tennis Championships.

Today, they're cooking their menus again,

in the hope of impressing the formidable panel of judges -

Matthew Fort, Oliver Peyton and Andi Oliver,

who are expecting nothing short of exceptional dishes.

Quite liking something isn't really enough, is it?

We want love, we want passion.

Having missed out on cooking for the judges last year,

Eddie is determined to impress them today.

I came here to get as far as I possibly could this time

and redeem a bit of myself.

But newcomer Tommy cooked strongly all week,

and also has his eyes firmly on the final.

I'm sure you've got a bit of confidence coming in here

-with that scoreboard.

-That's at the back of my mind now.

-That was yesterday.

-Only one can come out on top.

-Shouldn't it be a bit more crisp?

-It was undercooked in your eyes.

Each to their own, mate. Let's hope the judges agree with ME then.

Going through to the national finals is...

Returning chef Eddie Attwell failed to make it

to the Judges' Chamber last year and is determined to make amends.

After a string of sevens,

an eight from veteran judge Michael Smith for his dessert

got him through by a single point.

This is something completely new for me in this competition

but, obviously, the end goal is to represent Northern Ireland

and that would be unbelievable.

-All right?

-Good luck, mate.

-Good luck.

Newcomer Tommy Heaney topped the leaderboard all week,

finishing six points clear of Eddie,

after scoring a perfect ten for his dessert.

After last year, I think Eddie's come in all guns blazing.

I'm going to go in there, cook my dishes the best I can

and I don't see any reason why I don't go through to the next round.

To get through to next week's national finals,

the chefs will need to impress Matthew Fort, Oliver Peyton

and Andi Oliver, with their taste of summer menus.

So, Northern Ireland.

Eddie Attwell - he didn't get to cook for us last time.

But that experience of last year should stand him in good stead.

I have really keen expectations.

So, Tommy Heaney is the other contender today.

Interestingly, even though Eddie is the returner,

Tommy's the one who's had really high scores this week.

He's had a ten, a couple of nines.

So, poor Eddie, I think, has got his work cut out for him again.

The scores weren't THAT far apart.

This should be a really fierce competition between these two chefs.

I'm sure you've got a bit of confidence,

coming in here with that scoreboard.

That's at the back of my mind now, mate. That was yesterday.

Well, we've got four judges out there now,

four new people to impress.

-Hello, Chefs.

-Morning.

-Morning.

-Eddie, you're back again.

-Back again.

What does it feel like, the second time? Under more pressure, right?

I was under more pressure up until this point.

We're both under even pressure today.

How's it been for you, Tommy? Your first time in the kitchen.

You have an idea what it's going to be like

and it's completely different. The pressure.

You may think the pressure's been pretty tough so far

-but today, it gets real.

-Great - more pressure!

-Yeah.

-I needed that - thanks!

So, just raise the game. We want tens right the way across the board.

Very good luck to you both, and we look forward to eating.

-EDDIE:

-Thank you.

-Good luck, Chefs. See you later.

-Thank you.

Now we're through to the next stage, no disrespect, mate,

but I'm looking to go all the way.

I came here with a label of redemption

to get as far as I possibly could this time

and redeem a bit of myself,

but when it comes to the end of the competition, I'll shake your hand.

That's it.

Eddie is first to plate up his starter, Womble Common,

a humorous homage to Wimbledon,

inspired by the popular fictional characters.

The dish scored a seven from veteran judge Michael Smith,

who didn't think the salad evoked British summertime.

So, thinking of what Michael said about your starter,

are you going to brighten it up or change any elements on it?

I think I'd be a fool not to.

I want to use these leaves and let the summer shine on top more so.

The chefs will also be marked by a guest judge.

This week, it's tennis's greatest entertainer, Mansour Bahrami,

who's been delighting crowds with his trick shots

and on-court antics for years.

-Hello.

-Hello.

-Welcome, Mansour. Thank you for coming.

-Nice to see you.

-How are you? This is Oliver. This is Matthew.

-Oliver, how are you? Matthew.

-Nice to see you.

-Nice to see you.

You make people laugh and you bring a lot of entertainment to Wimbledon.

It's a very serious place to be.

The traditions are there, but also, the pressure of the tournament.

When people come to see me, and they say,

"Mr Bahrami, my son didn't like tennis.

"Since he saw you, he loves to play tennis, you know,"

and that's fantastic. When I see these people leaving

with the big smile after my match,

-I think I am just the happiest man on the Earth.

-Ah.

How did you discover that humour was the right way to play tennis?

I started playing tennis in Tehran in Iran.

I played with a shovel, with a broom, with a piece of wood,

and my best partner was the wall, against whom I played.

I never had a tennis lesson in my life.

So, do you think that more tennis players should learn to play

-with frying pans?

-If you want to win, no, you know.

LAUGHTER

This year's brief is a taste of summer and Wimbledon.

What does that mean to you?

I remember I was 17 when I came to London first time for Wimbledon,

and this strawberry and cream. I could eat ten of them.

Mansour, just as you managed to put a smile on other people's faces,

we hope that some of the food you eat today will put a smile on yours.

I'm sure it will.

Eddie starts his Womble Common dish

by plating his Coolea cheese custard.

He tops with nettle powder and adds pickled mushrooms.

The mushrooms - I can't really lose that element.

Said he didn't get them, so I've been trying to bring them up.

Then charred romaine lettuce leaves, broccoflower and radicchio.

-That's your lovage?

-No, it's the artichoke.

I've added a bit of nettle to this one, try and brighten it up.

Next, he adds watercress, edible flowers and a Douglas fir oil,

then fills his deep-fried Jerusalem artichoke skins

with Jerusalem artichoke puree and malt crumb.

He finishes with more Douglas fir oil to dress.

-Thank you very much.

-Happy with that, mate?

-Happy enough.

-Food!

-ANDI:

-Wow! I love the way it looks.

I want to get in there and see what's going on.

It's going to be very healthy, isn't it?

That's not a bad thing. Don't sound so scared!

Are you happy with the changes you made?

I'll take whatever comments are coming.

Oh, that's the cheesy custard at the bottom. I like the way this looks.

This is a bit of, I think, Jerusalem artichoke skin

which has been crisped up to look like bark.

-You eat this?

-Yeah, eat it.

-Oh, I thought it was...

-I thought I couldn't eat it.

-It's Jerusalem artichoke.

Mm, I'm glad you said to me I could eat it.

LAUGHTER

-OLIVER:

-It's not gastronomic enough.

I don't think just sticking in a bit of dehydrated artichoke

is going to win me over.

The cheese, I thought, is a little bit in the winter time, so...

I do think Mansour's made a very important point there.

That cheese sauce is quite wintry. This is not really a summer salad.

I quite like some of the flavours,

but quite liking something isn't really enough, is it?

-Listen, we want love.

-Yes.

-We want passion.

It's certainly not going to wow people at a banquet, is it?

Tommy is next to the pass,

with his warm pigeon salad...

Veteran judge Michael gave the dish seven points,

Tommy's lowest score of the week,

because he thought the pigeon leg was dry

and that serving it with the claw attached might put people off.

I was hoping it was going to be awful, but I like it.

So, full confited, yeah?

Yeah, maybe I'll just trim them down and take the claw off.

Tommy starts by coating pigeon legs in egg and breadcrumbs

before putting them in the fryer. But there's a problem.

What's up?

Fryer turned itself off. Apparently, they're on timers.

I have one ticking over here if you want to try and jump in.

First, Tommy dots a beetroot emulsion.

He adds pigeon breast, smoked beetroot

and pickled and fresh berries,

followed by candy cane, white and red pickled beetroot.

Michael said he thought the breast was a bit under for the banquet.

How did you find it?

I'm trying to take everything he said on board but I liked it.

Next, pickled shallots, green leaves and nasturtium oil and flowers.

He finishes with the breaded pigeon leg and scroll on the side.

It's just getting the first one out of the way, isn't it?

-Very nice plate.

-LAUGHTER

There's a little note here. "My name is Rufus the Hawk.

"Every morning at Wimbledon, I have the very important task

"of chasing away those pesky pigeons so that play can begin.

"I present to you this morning's catch, served up with beetroot."

-ANDI:

-I guess we're going to take it out.

-I think this could be this year's Wimbledon headwear.

-Yeah, wonderful!

Lost the claw. Hopefully makes it a bit more appealing.

I like the look of this little pigeon leg lollipop.

Very nicely presented, very colourful.

The flavours are good.

-ANDI:

-I think the breast is beautiful.

He's got the smoking of it just right.

I think the one problem I'm having is the way it's presented.

I could see this at the banquet, I really could.

Do you think that this starter would be a good way

to kick off a banquet at Wimbledon?

It's a very good idea. Why not?

It leaves me cooing with pleasure.

-ANDI:

-Oh!

-OLIVER:

-Oh!

Next, it's the fish course.

Eddie was praised for the summery ingredients

on his dish, Strawberries And Cream,

but dropped points for an extra buckwheat element,

which he added at the last minute.

Michael's biggest issue was the buckwheat.

-What did you think about that?

-It was heavy. There was a lot on it.

Scaled it back. Maybe just a wee sprinkle cos I like that texture.

Eddie begins with toasted scallops,

then adds charred and pickled strawberries,

topped with a sprinkling of buckwheat.

Next, his buckwheat crisps,

filled with strawberry and raw scallop tartare.

Do you think, with the texture of the raw scallop

and that on the cooked scallop should have been a bit more crisp?

That was undercooked in your eyes, to be honest.

Each to their own, mate. Let's hope the judges will be with ME then.

Eddie drizzles on strawberry-top dressing

and garnishes with sea purslane.

To finish he adds aerated scallop cream.

-Thanks very much.

-Well done, mate. Looks as good as the first time.

-I hope so.

-If not better.

-Well!

-I'm happy to see the strawberry here.

It makes me think of Wimbledon.

I very much hope that this dish does not taste as nasty as it looks.

ANDI LAUGHS

Do you think you've done enough this time to get more than a seven?

Let's see what the judges think.

I can't pick up any scallop flavour from the espuma.

I don't like that tartare at all. Bit unpleasant.

This tartare is not my thing. I'm sorry.

-ANDI:

-You quite like it, don't you?

-It's actually much better

than I expected it to be.

The only thing I like is the little nutty buckwheat.

I think the buckwheat actually brings out the sweetness,

that sort of muskiness of the buckwheat

helps bring out the sweetness of the scallop.

-OLIVER:

-I think the scallops themselves are overcooked,

I don't get the espuma thing at all, I think the strawberries are wrong.

I always like to hear you in a really positive mood!

-This is me being positive!

-Is that what it was?

Next up is Tommy's dish,

Murray Mound, a picnic-style nod

to Andy Murray's love of sushi.

It wowed veteran Michael, who gave it nine,

deducting a point for the cooking of the confit salmon

and failing to finesse the cucumber sushi roll.

That was your take on the sushi roll, was it?

Michael said he liked it, but it wasn't sushi, so why call it sushi?

First onto Tommy's plate is the cucumber roll,

filled with a salmon, cucumber and oyster emulsion tartare.

He bottles summer jus, then plates his confit salmon,

avocado puree and buttermilk and horseradish sorbet.

Happy with the cooking of that salmon this time, Tom?

Cooked it a bit longer and then I blowtorched it a bit longer as well.

Next, he adds red cabbage caviar,

pickled cucumber and mooli spaghetti,

before garnishing with micro coriander and oyster leaf.

He finishes with a cup of summer jus granita,

topped with summer cup foam.

There you go.

Didn't realise there were so many components on that.

Ba-ba-ba-bam!

-ANDI:

-Oh.

-Wow!

-I really like the look of this.

-OLIVER:

-Me too.

I think it looks very nice, very fresh.

Excuse me, can someone give me a magnifying glass?

Oh, is it too small?

I think I've cooked the salmon the way I wanted it.

I think I've nailed it this time.

The main part of the dish would be a great deal more attractive

if the sorbet wasn't melting and the red cabbage caviar wasn't leaking.

-I quite like the red cabbage caviar leaking in.

-Oh, do you?

I think it all looks really fun and appealing.

-That red cabbage was very good.

-You like the little pearls.

The colour was fantastic. Sorry, Matthew.

-OLIVER:

-I think this is delicious.

I really do think it's a taste of summer.

All the combinations of flavours work really, really well together.

Can I say that this tartare is beautiful.

I think it's one of the most disgusting pieces of salmon

-I've eaten in about 40 years!

-I'm loving that tartare.

It's absolutely awful!

This dish is rescued by the horseradish sorbet

and this absolutely wonderful summer cup here,

which I think is utterly delicious.

At the halfway point, the judges are weighing up

the chefs' courses so far.

I'm a bit disappointed with Eddie.

He'll have to do a lot better in the second half.

There's a sort of degree of joined-up thinking

in Tommy's dishes and you have a really strong sense of personality.

There's no foregone conclusions, that's for sure.

-Come on, Eddie, do it!

-LAUGHTER

For the main course, Tommy is up first,

with his surf and turf dish, A Summer Holiday,

inspired by childhood summer barbecues.

You got a nine. You making any changes?

He said he didn't think I needed the cockles but I like the cockles,

so if somebody doesn't want them, just push them to the side.

Tommy begins with a eucalyptus onion puree,

followed by barbecued lamb ribs,

barbecued lamb rump and charred onions.

-Tommy, how's the lamb looking?

-Good, mate.

It's pink with a nice barbecue flavour on it.

I can smell it from here, mate.

Nerves are starting to kick in a bit here.

All over the shop, all over it.

Next, his pickled cockles and sea vegetables and herbs.

He adds a pot of salsa verde and arranges a barbecue of lamb ribs,

sweetcorn and baked potato skins,

which he fills with aerated creamed potatoes.

To finish, a jug of lamb sauce.

-Thank you. One act left.

-Push.

-That was tough.

Oh, look! It's a proper bit of barbecuing.

-Oh, there's actual smoke.

-There's actual lamb!

-I hope you're hungry.

-I AM hungry and this looks good.

Let's hope it doesn't smoke the room up in there.

Love the idea of having, at the banquet,

something that just means people have got to kind of get stuck in.

There really is a lot happening here.

I think that, maybe, there's just a wee bit TOO much.

The first thing I thought was the shellfish,

I don't see what the shellfish is doing here.

I think they're completely wrong.

You get none of the sweetness of the cockles, you just get the acidity.

-ANDI:

-I think the lamb's really nice. I really like that.

I'm enjoying the salsa verde, I like the potato.

I think the dish needs a bit of editing.

I think the eucalyptus sauce is just not correct.

I would take the shellfish out and put another piece of lamb there.

LAUGHTER

-For a taste of summer, it just seems a bit...

-Heavy.

-ANDI:

-Heavy-handed.

-OLIVER:

-Yeah.

Next up is Eddie

and his dish, Lawn Fayre - his take on a summer picnic,

using rare Irish water buffalo.

I'm not here to show them jokes, I'm here to show them good food.

Having received sevens for his starter and fish courses,

Eddie failed to score higher for his main,

with Michael criticising his overcomplicated dish.

So, you got another seven. You going to make any changes?

Changed the shape of the quiche. I might even go half.

I'm not too sure. This is going right at the end.

I'm starting to get confused again and think too much.

I just need shut up and do what I was going to do this morning.

Eddie begins with dots of lovage emulsion,

before purple potato, onions and pickled beetroot.

Next, he adds asparagus tips and a purple potato salad,

which he tops with carrot powder,

before adding his corned water buffalo quiche.

-How is your quiche different?

-It's a different shape.

I wanted less pastry.

I don't want to be banging on about a great meat and me letting it down.

Eddie plates water buffalo steak

and adds a braised and smoked butter reduction,

before topping with lovage oil and a baby courgette flower.

-Happy with that, mate?

-Why not?

You've definitely made the necessary tweaks on that.

That steak looks so much better.

-Ah, another box. A box of tricks.

-It's a grass court.

-It's proper grass too!

-ANDI:

-It is. It's actually not Astroturf!

What you got in them boxes, mate?

-Bricks at the bottom of them?

-It's not! Real grass.

Wimbledon grass is very, very tasty.

-I like it.

-LAUGHTER

-OLIVER:

-I'm very excited to try the buffalo.

Oh, wow! That buffalo's lovely.

-And it's cooked rare as well.

-I have never had buffalo. First time.

The meat is very tender.

-Actually, it's got terrific flavour.

-Nicely cooked.

-I like the purple potato salad.

-Mm...so do I.

-I was a bit worried about the quiche.

-I like it.

I think it's got good flavour.

-ANDI:

-I'm really pleasantly surprised,

because I was a bit, like, a quiche?! But it's yummy!

There's a lot to love about this, actually.

It's a very well-balanced dish, this.

-Eddie, welcome back!

-ANDI:

-Indeed.

First to plate up his dessert is Tommy, with Game, Set And Match,

inspired by Wimbledon's tennis balls,

which are chilled to the same temperature

to ensure a perfect bounce.

The dish scored a perfect ten from Michael.

Even watching you go again at it, it's fantastic to watch.

-I love this dish.

-Yeah, lots of elements to it,

so it's a bit of a hard one, you know,

but hopefully I get it right again here.

Tommy begins with oat and hazelnut crumb,

white chocolate and strawberry powder

and a sprinkling of popping candy.

He adds fresh strawberries, strawberry clouds,

basil gel and compressed strawberries.

Next, meringue shards,

topped with freeze-dried strawberry powder

and cubes of lemon jelly and basil sponge.

-That's the wee lemon jellies going on last, is it?

-Not quite last.

A few more elements to go on there before that.

He tops with a quenelle

of strawberry and elderflower champagne sorbet

and garnishes with micro basil.

To finish, he places his vanilla

and elderflower cream sphere tennis balls,

coated with coloured white chocolate into a mini fridge.

Thank you very much.

-Done! Done!

-What you going to do?

-I'm out of here!

MATTHEW LAUGHS

-Mm, shall we open it? Ready, steady...

-ANDI:

-Go.

-Oh!

-Ah, you've got more smoke.

Michael enjoyed it, you all enjoyed it.

-Yeah.

-Hopefully, they'll enjoy it.

-OLIVER:

-What's inside?

-It's quite sort of dramatic, that.

-It's a very nice colour.

-The white chocolate's a bit bland, actually.

I'm not sure the basil sponge quite hits the spot.

I've just eaten a piece of the strawberry cloud

and it's 98% devoid of flavour.

Just doesn't deliver, in terms of sensation and flavours.

-It's a bit bland.

-If he concentrated on the tennis ball,

I think it's a really good sorbet in the middle.

It looks nice, but it's too much work for not much, you know.

Yeah. I'm a bit disappointed in that.

Well, all I say is, new balls, please.

Eddie is last to the pass,

with his dessert, Drop Shot,

inspired by the skill of landing the tennis ball just over the net.

The dish won Eddie an eight, his highest score of the week,

but he was marked down for the overly sweet fuchsia cordial.

The cordial's not as sweet today?

-Have you reduced the sweetness in it?

-By diluting it, I should have.

-Dilute it, yeah.

-Again, panic, panic. Too many errors.

Eddie begins with dots of blueberry gel,

discs of white chocolate sponge

and a quenelle of caramelised white chocolate mousse.

Next, a sugar icing net.

You're putting the net directly on the plate now?

The net's integral to the story.

He adds his white chocolate balls, dyed with green food colouring.

He places more caramelised mousse inside his balls,

then fresh and marinated blueberries and a garnish of edible flowers.

Next, a quenelle of ox-eye daisy sorbet.

How's the sorbet looking?

-Much better as a sorbet than a granita.

-Yeah?

He finishes with vodka-soaked berries,

white chocolate crumb and his fuchsia cordial.

Thanks very much.

-Done.

-Yeah.

-ANDI:

-Oh. Wow, that tennis ball's amazing.

-Ha, ha, ha, ha!

-Can I show you how to do it?

Go on, then.

-Yeah, you see....

-ANDI LAUGHS

-Think you've done enough?

-Why not? I can't go back on it now, can I?

I'm not a dessert man, but I like this dessert, really.

The mousse inside the sphere is really delicious

and I like the little bursts of blueberries

that you get with it.

I don't like the sponge and I don't like the ox-eye daisy granita.

But all the rest of it, actually, I DO rather like.

The mousse is good, the sphere is good

and then we start going off-piste

and we get into all this granita business and...

-ANDI:

-Yeah, we don't need that.

-Try and persuade Mansour.

-The man's cleaned his plate!

-I thought you didn't like pudding.

I had pleasure seeing it and I had good pleasure eating it

and I don't eat a dessert usually.

Mansour, do you think Eddie's Drop Shot is a winning shot?

-It's the match point.

-Ah!

-Well!

Hopefully, I've done enough.

I haven't come this far to kind of...

to say, "Off you go, mate, into the next round."

Obviously, I don't want this to be the end for me.

I'd love to be able to go on through again. It's up to the judges.

-OLIVER:

-You can see there's a lot of great quality in these two guys.

They both worked so hard today.

They've put everything they had into it.

It's all down to the scores, isn't it?

Welcome, Chefs. Has it been an easy day at the office?

Far from it, far from it. It's been hard, really hard.

Well, at the start of the day,

it looked as if one of you was going to have a runaway success.

But in the afternoon, the other chef absolutely came storming back.

In the end, the final scores were extremely close.

As you know, only one of you can win.

Going through to the national finals is...

..Tommy.

-Go on, mate.

-Congratulations, Tommy. How do you feel about that?

Ah, speechless. Really speechless.

We were particularly impressed

with the effort you put in to your dishes.

Your presentation was absolutely wonderful.

Tommy, pigeon.

I think it's a long time since we've had pigeon on the menu

and particularly one that was so beautifully cooked.

It was a delight and a surprise.

-Eddie, commiserations.

-No.

Listen, I've never had water buffalo

and I have to tell you

we all thought that was a sensational dish.

Eddie, your dessert, I ate it all.

It was scary to see Drop Shot and then YOU walk in.

It was obviously one of your tricks. It was my last stab.

-It was a good drop shot!

-Thanks very much.

So, Tommy, we'll see you at the final.

-The good news is this was the easy bit.

-Oh, brilliant!

-Thank you all again.

-Thank you very much.

Thank you, Chefs. Well done. Thanks for all your work.

Wasn't expecting that, really wasn't.

I came in here with redemption. I think I've done that.

I can walk out with my head up.

Tommy's in the right place to go forward and he's the one

that's going to take Northern Ireland to the banquet.

-All right, mate.

-Fantastic, eh?

-CORK POPS

-If you go forward,

you represent Northern Ireland the way you've done it this week,

-and I want to see you at the banquet.

-I'll do my best, mate.

If you need a pot washer, let me know.

-Congratulations, mate.

-Thank you, mate.

-Good luck.

-Thank you.