Our chef and barista enter the 2025 TUCO competitions
See what last year’s competitors had to say
TUCO – The University Caterers Organisation – host a series of professional competitions every year where university kitchen and café staff battle it out in intense, high-energy challenges. Think MasterChef vibes, but university edition.
For another year running, our team will be right in the middle of it, showing everyone what they’re made of. Our barista Imma and chef Angeline will be heading back to the competitions to demonstrate their skills and challenge themselves once again.
Here’s what Cardiff University Food’s competitors had to say about their experience last year…
Imma: Barista competition ☕️
“I believe it’s important to step out of our comfort zones to discover new opportunities, whether they turn out good or bad, there’s always something to learn!
Preparing for the competition was tough. I spent many weekends training hard because I like to be fully prepared. Once I got into the training, time flew by without me even noticing! I got support from my family, friends, colleagues, and clients, which made it a team effort. The only downside was I couldn't sleep well for weeks due to all the caffeine I was consuming!”
“The idea for my special drink came from some research I did online. I wanted something inspired by the region hosting the competition. After looking at local ingredients, I was interested in combining plum and coffee. Adding elderflower was a practical choice, and I liked the idea of adding some bubbles too.”
“Overall, it was a great experience. I learned a lot about the industry and had fun comparing myself with others from different universities. The best part was competing alongside others in a friendly way. The hardest part? Not winning the prize! But even in defeat, there are lessons to be learned. It's important to adapt and stay positive."
Angeline: Vegan competition 🌱
“Entering the TUCO Vegan Challenge was like signing up for a rollercoaster ride fueled by my love for cooking and saving the planet. With just 30 minutes on the clock, I dove into the challenge brief, aiming to whip up a vegan dish that would make even carnivores drool.”
Before settling on my final dish – a Vegan Korean Bibimbap with a cheeky Vegan Fried Egg – a dish as daring as it was delicious. I brainstormed like a mad scientist, balancing flavors, aesthetics, and nutrition, all while dodging the temptation to just use one of the Green Shoots Salads! Weeks of practice followed, with my kitchen becoming a laboratory (literally...a vegan fried egg is no joke) of trial and error as I attempted to perfect the recipe and timing.”
“Stepping into the competition arena felt like entering a culinary Thunderdome, but instead of fighting for survival, we were battling to impress with our plant-based prowess. Amidst the chaos, camaraderie bloomed as we exchanged tips and cheered each other on, turning the pressure cooker atmosphere into a simmering pot of shared excitement.
Sure, there were nerve-wracking moments, like waiting for judges as if I were on a reality cooking show, but the rush of creativity and the satisfaction of presenting my creation made it all worthwhile.”
Gwen: Barista competition ☕️
“When Chris told me about the competition and asked if I was interested in taking part I thought it would be a good opportunity to learn more about the industry and that it would be a fun experience.
As part of it we needed to come up with our own signature drink. I started off by thinking about what flavours I like and settled on ginger. From there I had to think about what flavours pair well with it and went with coconut. I then had to test various ways of blending and balancing the ingredients, in the end I went with stem ginger and coconut water with the espresso. The drink was a bit visually bland and so with the help of Ang I made a coconut foam to float on top”
“The competition is in the style of a 15 minute presentation whilst making the drinks and so I needed to practice talking and explaining whilst making drinks while under a time constraint. At one of the supper club evenings we did a practice run in front of a handful of students. We gathered feedback from them as well as any thoughts they had on our signature drinks.”
“Overall it was a great experience, I learnt loads about coffee and the creative process of coming up with my own drink was really engaging. The 15 minutes I was on stage was both my favourite and least favourite part of the whole thing, it was stressful but I’m glad I did it.
I would definitely suggest anyone who is interested to take part, it's a new way of looking at what we do all day.”
Luke: Burger competition 🍔
“I have not competed before in catering, so thought it would be an enjoyable experience to bring my competitive side from rowing and combine it with my culinary skills.
“Me, Marc, and Angeline had a couple of brainstorming sessions. I originally produced a few ideas, and we worked through the pros and cons of each one, then narrowed it down to two ideas which we then assessed in the kitchen. We decided that the Vibin Moroccan Mingle Burger would stick out from the crowd, as we did not think anyone would think to use turkey as it is a traditionally difficult meat to work with.”
“I actually enjoyed competing, I thought I’d be more nervous, but I just stuck to my process that I’d practiced, I went a little bit too fast at the start probably because of the nerves, so about midway I slowed down a little bit, you don’t really notice the judges to be honest, I’m not even sure if they came to watch me, I was so focused on doing everything right for my dish.”
“Professionally, it's vastly different to anything I have done before, I have never had my food judged by a very experienced judge, usually if I have cooked something for someone it is either been for a job interview or if we are creating new dishes in a restaurant. It will be nice to get my feedback and see where I can improve for next year, even if I do a different category, I will be able to use some of the feedback in my practice.”
