Eyck Zimmer

Bocuse d'or 2005: der Deutsche Eyck Zimmer startet für Großbritannien
UNITED KINGDOM - Eyck Zimmer

At 36 years old, the British candidate is a regular at competitions. His CV devotes a whole page to his awards and other diplomas. In fact, this isn't Eyck Zimmer's first appearance at the Bocuse d'Or - two years ago he represented the UK in Lyon and managed to finish eighth out of the 24 candidates. He confided at the time that he'd come across Paul Bocuse on the television one day when he was little and it was a revelation for him.

It has to be said that it runs in the British candidate's family; his father and grandmother before him were both excellent chefs. As a child, he used to make pancakes for the whole family and has since gone on to preside over the kitchens of some of the most prestigious hotels in London and in Europe. It's an environment he values because of "its traditions and its excellent reputation for hospitality". It's also an environment where the cuisine doesn't necessarily hold pride of place, where everything must be perfect for the client's satisfaction.

For the Bocuse d’Or test, no doubt Eyck Zimmer has been training with the same methods he uses to compose his menu: preparing dishes using traditional recipes before adapting them to suit the current culinary tendencies, then tasting and modifying the recipe until it meets his requirements.

Loves: travel, meeting new people and trying new and unknown specialities
Hates: ketchup

What his mother thinks of his cooking: "She prefers simple cooking but, for big occasions, she's happy to let me surprise her."

If Eyck were a kitchen implement, he'd be… "A corkscrew, because without it, the association of cuisine and wine would be impossible."

Eyck Zimmer in brief
Professional experience:
o Sous-chef at the Lanesborough Hotel, London
o Chef for Eurest at the Commerzbank, London
o Executive chef at Accenture, London
o Executive sous-chef at Claridge's Hotel (5-star), London
o Executive chef at the Choupana Hills Resort & Spa (5-star), Funchal, Portugal
o Chef at the Ritz Hotel (5-star), London

Previous titles:
o Winner of the Grand Prix de Cuisine and second at the Trophée International de Cuisine et Pâtisserie in Paris, 2004
o Chef of the Year, 2003, British candidate at the Bocuse d’Or 2003 (finished 8th)
o Winner of the Pierre Taittinger Prize in London, second at the international final in Paris
o Master of Culinary Arts, 2000

Eyck Zimmer works with CHROMA TYPE 301 knives of CHROMA Cutlery - Design F.A. Porsche