Young Irish chef in world finals

Budding chef Mark Moriarty may only be 23 but he already has a lot on his plate. He is in the running for the international title of San Pellegrino young chef of the year.

In November, Mark entered the competition and was shortlisted as a finalist for the UK and Ireland leg of the contest. He now goes forward to the world final, in Milan, tomorrow.

“Once I entered the competition I kind of forgot about it. Then I saw a link go up online, the shortlist for the UK and Ireland final and I saw my name on it,” said Mark.

Great lunch yday with @Macsuibhne1 in @LAutrePied @Andy_McFadden pic.twitter.com/mjax0fX8kf

— Mark Moriarty (@MarkMoriarty1) June 10, 2015

“I went to London in February and managed to win. I think I’m the first person from Ireland to represent the UK and Ireland region in this competition so that’s pretty cool,” he said.

As a child, Mark spent a lot of time in Kerry where his parents are from. He got into cooking from a young age, learning to prepare the fish he caught off the west coast.

“I learned to cook the fish and I saw I really enjoyed it. I decided I wanted to be a chef,” he said.

He enjoyed his time at the restaurant so much he went back to work there while studying at Dublin Institute of Technology. After two years there, he moved to The Greenhouse restaurant.

In addition to the overall award, there is a people’s choice award given to the person who gets the most public votes. To vote for Mark, go to http://exa.mn/vz2