Tom Lee crowned North West Young Chef of the Year

The 24-year-old sous chef from the London Carriage Works in Liverpool was presented with the top award at a high-profile ceremony at Manchester's Deansgate Hilton (Wednesday). It is a particularly poignant win for the Toxteth-born chef, who spent months' soul searching after narrowly missing out on last year's title to Chris Rawlinson. "I was deeply disappointed to lose out last year and wasn't going to enter this year's competition," said Tom, who now lives in Edge Hill, Wavertree. "Then I thought, hang on, no, I'm going to do this and went though the judges' feedback with a fine toothcomb to see where I could improve. I'm so glad I did. When they called my name out yesterday, I felt like the greatest race horse; Sea The Stars, when he won the Prix de l'Arc De Triomphe by 18 lengths." Crowned in front of regional producers, food writers and top chefs, Tom not only walked away with his dream title, but a week long bursary in a top European restaurant with mentoring from an accomplished chef, a weekend for two at a luxury hotel and a set of Global chefs' knives. His ambition is to make it to the top. "I particularly look up to chefs like Gordon Ramsay and Tom Aiken and would love to have my own Michelin-starred restaurant one day," he said. "For now, though, I want to get more experience, learn more about the culinary arts." Cumbria heat winner Andrew Postlethwaite, who works at Castle Green Hotel, Kendal, was hailed this year's competition runner-up.