Trying to find the chefs and restaurateurs of the future

Comedians including Shappi Khorsandi, Ken Cheng, Rosie Jones are to play 'difficult diners’ in a new CBBC show.

Step Up To The Plate will search for the next generation of chefs and restaurateurs.

Teams of 10- to 14 year-olds will be through their paces as they set out to uncover a maître d' and head chef

They learn skills from mentors, but then have to cope with awkward customers, who also include comics  Johnny Cochrane and Inel Tomlinson – who are known to kids' TV viewers from The Johnny and Inel Show – and Stacy Liu of CBBC drama The Dumping Ground.

The show is hosted by Fred Sirieix, the maître d' from  Channel 4's First Dates, and celebrity chef Allegra McEvedy.

Sirex, pictured, said: 'I’ve always wanted to showcase the hospitality industry in all its glory. This show is a unique opportunity to do that and to teach kids the art of service and the art of running a restaurant. It’s about inspiring and educating the next generation of professionals into the world of catering and hospitality because it is a wonderful industry and there are great career prospects there.'

Here's a clip featuring  Strictly Come Dancing’s AJ Pritchard as a diner:

Step Up To The Plate starts on CBBC from Monday August 12 

Published: 17 Jul 2019