Tante Marie Culinary Academy Theatre

The Tante Marie Culinary Academy will take centre stage again at the Woking Food and Drink Festival 2015, in Jubilee Square.

Throughout the free, three-day festival the Tante Marie Culinary Academy Theatre will serve a healthy portion of tasty live cooking demonstrations, delivered by a range of prestigious chefs and local restaurant owners.

Demonstration chefs

The line up of demonstration chefs for this year's festival will be announced over the coming months. In the meantime, whet your appetite by taking a look at who took part in last year's festival:

• Frances Quinn – Great British Bake Off 2013 winner.
• Jack Stein – chef and Head of Development for Rick Stein in Padstow, Cornwall.
• Sabrina Ghayour – private and supper club chef, food blogger and author of top-selling ‘Persiana’ cookbook.
• Neil Rankin – Featured chef on BBC Two’s Great British Menu and owner of the Smokehouse in London.
• Mark Lloyd – Former Head Chef at River Cottage and expert British wild food forager.
• Steve Drake – Former Roux Scholarship winner and owner of Drakes in Ripley; a Michelin Star rated restaurant.
• Fernando Stovell – Featured chef on Saturday Kitchen and owner of Stovell’s restaurant in Chobham.
• Ben Piette – MasterChef 2010 semi-finalist and owner of London House restaurant in Old Woking.
• Mourad Khiat – Head Pastry Chef at the 5* Berkeley Hotel in Knightsbridge, London and owner of MK Pastry Arts, Woking.
• Thierry de Magneval – Former Sommelier and restaurateur at the Berkeley Hotel, Roux Brassiere, Roux at Parliament Square, La Gavroche and Chief Sommelier and owner of Cellar Magneval in Woking.
• Tante Marie Culinary Academy instructors – The oldest independent cookery school in the UK which has been based in the Borough for the last 60 years.

Theatre host

The Tante Marie Culinary Academy Theatre will be hosted by Jo Pickard, an experienced TV and event presenter, actress and food blogger.

Previously, Jo has presented at Taste of London and Taste of Christmas festivals, the Park Live stage at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and she has also hosted events for Angela Harnett – one the UK’s leading female Michelin Star chefs.

Tante Marie Culinary Academy

Established in 1954, the Tante Marie Culinary Academy is the oldest UK independent cookery academy which is based in Woking. Over the last 60 years the Academy has developed an internationally acclaimed reputation for excellence, with graduates running successful businesses around the world.

New training school and restaurant

In its new state-of-the-art premises in Woking Town Centre, Tante Marie Culinary Academy is just 25 minutes from central London.

Tante Marie’s professional chef courses and Cordon Bleu Diploma qualification have put the Academy on the map as a leading cookery school. In addition, the CTH Level 4 Diploma in Professional Culinary Arts, created by Tante Marie and the Confederation of Tourism and Hospitality, is now one of the world’s leading professional cookery qualifications.

Integrated in the new academy’s premises, is The Restaurant at Tante Marie where graduates of the professional cookery courses showcase their skills whilst undertaking a paid apprenticeship towards a hospitality management qualification, and where members of the public can experience the very best of Tante Marie food in a relaxed, informal environment.

It also offers a wide range of inspirational lifestyle courses, including evening and kids’ cookery courses in a state-of-the-art new kitchen.

For more information, visit www.tantemarie.co.uk