Head chef at the Alderley Edge Hotel is about to become a national television chef as a selection of top cooking names line up for the BBC's latest 'Great British Menu' series.
The eight-week series launches on 28th January and the North West episode – featuring Chris Holland alongside Aiden Byrne and Mary-Ellen McTague – will air on 11th February at 7.30pm.
This year's theme is a celebration of the Comic Relief charity fundraising marathon and the chefs are tasked with creating playful, funny dishes inspired and judged by some of the UK's best comedians and TV comedy writers.
Chris Holland, who started working at the Alderley Edge Hotel in 1996, said "It's one of the highest-pressure experiences I've ever had in a kitchen and competing with Aiden Byrne, who is one of the country's most experienced chefs at this competition level, made it even more stressful. But it's great fun too and the comedy brief brings out some great food ideas from everyone."
Chris Holland, currently Cheshire Life's "North West Chef of the Year", heads the team of chefs that helped achieve the Alderley Restaurant's three-AA rosette rating and launch the hotel's new Brasserie which currently holds the "Best Cheshire Restaurant" title.
To mark the event, Alderley Restaurant customers will have a chance to taste some of Chris's TV dishes for themselves as part of a new seasonal tasting menu that runs from the start of the series on 28th January.
The six-course tasting menu, and coffee, will be available every lunchtime and evening, Monday to Saturday, right through to the end of March - and Alderley Edge Hotel will donate 10% of the £70 cover price to Comic Relief.
Then, on Monday 11th March, the three North West 'Great British Menu' chefs will re-unite for a fundraising dinner at the Alderley Edge Hotel. Chris Holland, Aiden Byrne and Mary-Ellen McTague will recreate their television dishes and another donation, from the ticket sales, will be made to Comic Relief.
