Chefs from West Wales are set to showcase their culinary skills at the ICC
Newport: This week, West Wales chefs are gearing up to compete for national titles. The Welsh International Culinary Championships (WICC) 2025 is happening, and it’s going to be quite the show.
About 150 chefs, along with front-of-house staff and students, will be strutting their stuff over three days. It’s all organized by the Culinary Association of Wales and takes place at the ICC Wales.
Four national titles are up for grabs, plus the Skills Competition Wales honors. And for the first time, there’s a Castell Howell Food Show as part of the event.
One of the highlights is the National Chef of Wales final, where ten talented chefs will compete. Sam Everton from Llangeler is in the mix, hoping to win both the Junior and National Chef titles back-to-back.
Another contender is Sam Rust from Swansea, who works at The Grove in Narberth. They’ll have three hours to whip up three courses for 12 diners, using local Welsh ingredients and Cygnet Gin.
Then there’s the Welsh Apprentice Butcher of the Year final, featuring Kieran Thomas from Carmarthen Market. He’ll have 30 minutes to break down a whole Welsh lamb and then create a stunning display of his work.
Arwyn Watkins, the CAW president, is excited about the event. He believes it’ll be a fantastic showcase of talent and the quality of Welsh food and drink.
Next year, they’ll be gearing up for the Worldchefs Congress & Expo 2026 at the same venue, which is a big deal since it’s the first time it’ll be held in the UK.
The WICC is free for visitors, including local school pupils. If you want to catch the action, you can pre-book tickets to see the finals.
Winners will be announced at an awards dinner, and there are plenty of sponsors backing this event, showing just how much support there is for culinary talent in Wales.
