Lake District-based chef Jack Bond, head chef and co-owner of Michelin-starred and three AA rosette The Cottage in the Wood, Cumbria, won the North West regional heat, which kicked off the 2025 season of GBM, on Tuesday 28th January.
Jack will now go on to compete in Finals Week against the other regional winners for a coveted spot at the Banquet, which this year is being held at Blenheim Palace.

This year’s theme ‘Great Britons’ will see the chefs draw inspiration from important people, who’ve come from their area from ancient and modern history as they develop their menus, with the best being showcased at the banquet marking 20 years of the Great British Menu.
As one of four chefs representing the North West, we saw Jack pit his culinary skills against three other chefs from across the region, who were: Eddie Shepherd, from The Walled Gardens underground restaurant in Manchester, James Hill, Head Chef of The Oak at Curthwaite, near Carlisle, Cumbria and Livia Alarcon, of La Bistroteca, at Baltic Market in Liverpool.
During the week we saw proceedings get underway, all under the watchful eye of veteran judge and former GBM winner Chef Paul Ainsworth.
First up were the canapes, with Jack offering up a refined take on a Pie and a Pint, featuring a beer batter croustade, filled with Guinness rarebit and stout pickled onions, which though not scored saw Jack placed second should there be a tiebreak.
Next up was the vegan starter, entitled Rough Terrain, a layered potato dish finished with truffle representing the structure of the fells, celebrating the Formation of the first civilian Mountain Rescue Team – Coniston MRT by local mountaineer Jim Cameron in 1947, which earned Jack a score of seven, putting him in second place.
The fish course entitled Taught By Nature followed, a dish inspired by the elements of nature mentioned by Poet William Wordsworth in his many tomes to the Lake District, saw Jack’s Chalk Stream Trout dish score a nine, putting him level with Eddie.
Sadly, at the end of day one we saw James Hill, depart from the kitchen as the first chef to leave the competition, despite putting up a good fight resulting in a canape tie-breaker with Livia to see who would make it through mains and desserts on day two.
The arrival of day two saw Jack pay Homage to eminent Lake District walking author Alfred Wainwright with a main course entitled Bagging Wainwrights, which saw him serve up a dish of Herdwick Loin, Herdwick Cumberland Sausage and Herdwick BBQ Rib. Which once again saw him achieve a score of nine to take the lead by the narrowest of margins.
On to the Pre-Dessert, which saw Jack pay homage to Liverpool-born comedian and presenter Paul O’Grady and his famous character Lilly Savage, with a creation entitled Watch Your Mouth – a Lip-Shaped Sour Cherry Choc-Ice, which the judges ranked in first place, once more in the event of a tie in the following rounds.
Dessert itself saw Jack deliver a dish recognising the work of Charles Booth in introducing free school meals, entitled No Running In The Dinner Hall – a take on Jam Rolly Polly, served with Ginger Custard and an extra decadent side of Jelly and Ice Cream, featuring Champagne Jelly and Apple Sorbet, which delivered the Liverpool born chef another score of nine, putting him in overall first place and earning him a spot at the Judges Table.
At the end of day two, we sadly see Livia Alarcon, the youngest chef representing the Northwest become the second chef to leave the competition.
With the arrival of day three, we watch Eddie Shepherd and Jack Bond meet in the kitchen as they make tweaks to their dishes in the hope of impressing the judging panel made up of Michelin-starred, GBM double banquet winner, Tom Kerridge; Comedian and Food Podcast Presenter Ed Gamble; and new for this year, Scotland’s Lorna McNee, of Michelin-starred restaurant Cail Bruich, a former champion of champions on Great British Menu, alongside special guest inspirational Hillsborough campaigner Margret Aspinall.
Both Eddie and Jack battled long and hard to impress the judges, with Eddie amassing a score of 103 across all four scored courses, whilst Jack amassed a total of 130, which now means he goes on to represent the Northwest in Finals Week, with the hope of securing a dish at the Banquet.
Jack Bond, head chef and co-owner of The Cottage in the Wood, Whinlatter, said: ‘’I’m thrilled to go on to represent the Northwest, especially my home town of Liverpool and the Lake District, which is where Beth and I have settled with our son and now call home. I’m hoping I can now do the region proud and get a dish through to the Banquet, but I know finals week is going to be even more intense. I’m a pretty competitive person by nature, but I have to say that was an especially tough week! I have to say a big well done to my fellow competitors James, Livia and Eddie, they all gave me a run for my money and above all else made the heat special to be part of. Now all I can do is wait to see who I’m going to be up against in Finals Week.’’
Watch Great British Menu as it continues on Tuesday 04th February at 8pm on BBC Two and iPlayer.
Image credit for both images: Optomen Television Ltd.
Website: https://www.thecottageinthewood.co.uk
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