In brief

Critics in the line of fire

Restaurant critics Fay Maschler, Bill Knott, Matthew Fort, Caroline Stacey and Charles Campion donned chefs' whites on 14 October to cook a three-course dinner for 120 industry guests as part of Action Against Hunger Week 2001.

Diners, including Giorgio Locatelli of soon-to-be-launched Locanda Locatelli at London's Churchill Inter-Continental hotel, Mark Edwards of Nobu, Mark Hix of Le Caprice and Fergus Henderson of St John, were treated to a menu of windapple soup with penny buns and nasturtium leaves; roast Middle White pork, apricot farce, quince jelly, offal mash and Savoy cabbage; and a black and blueberry crumble with lavender custard cooked by the critics. The charity expects the final total raised from the event at London's Circus Restaurant and Bar to reach more than £8,000.

2001 Young Chef Young Waiter

Jason Birkbeck and Francois Labarre have been named this year's American Express Young Chef and Young Waiter after a closely-fought final at London's Westminster Kingsway College last week.

Birkbeck, 23, a chef at Northcote Manor in Blackburn, Lancashire, and Labarre, 25, a waiter at London's Orrery restaurant, beat 14 other finalists to take the coveted titles.

Runners-up were chef Ben Turner, 24, also of Orrery, and waiter Clemens Mair, 24, of London's Oxo Tower restaurant; while Peter Eaton, 24, of Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, Oxfordshire, and Luciano Racca, 23, of the Dorchester in London, were the third-placed chef and waiter respectively.

• See next week's Caterer for a full report.