Home > News>Mellors Golden Whisk is BACK for 2026! Mellors Golden Whisk is BACK for 2026! Posted: 1st April 2026 | Category: Achievements, Team The wait is over… the Mellors Golden Whisk Award is officially back for its 9th year! One of the most exciting events in the #TeamMellors calendar, the Golden Whisk celebrates the incredible foodie creativity, passion, and talent across our 350 sites — and this year promises to be bigger than ever. Open to all 1,800 Mellors catering unit-based team members, the competition is your chance to step into the spotlight and showcase skills with a menu designed around this year’s delicious theme… “Global Kitchen”. Global Kitchen We’re inviting teams to create a vibrant menu inspired by a foodie destination anywhere in the world — taking students on a fun, flavour-packed journey through exciting new tastes, traditions, and cultures. The winning menu will be brought to life on our very own Mellors Tuk Truck! This is a fantastic opportunity to get involved and create something delicious, inspiring, and practical to be served on-board the Tuk Truck — a true celebration of global street food. Sponsored by Unilever, the Golden Whisk award will see successful #TeamMellors entrants progress through local and regional heats, before heading to the spectacular final at the Cheshire Cookery School. And of course, there are some fantastic prizes up for grabs, including: £250 high street vouchers An overnight stay at the Lancashire Manor Hotel Golden Whisk apron Unilever Goody Bag Golden Whisk Trophy Plus many more! Stuart Dale, Mellors Executive Development Chef, says: “This competition is a fantastic chance for our teams to show off their creativity and have their dishes brought to life on our amazing Tuk Truck. As a family-run, multiple award-winning business, we’re proud to give our teams the freedom to innovate.” Andrew Walker, Chief Operating Officer, adds: “The Golden Whisk is all about celebrating passion for food — showcasing the incredible skills within our Mellors family and giving our people the chance to try new ideas and let their talent shine.” Anna Bamber, Head of Marketing, says: “The culinary talent within Mellors is remarkable! Each year the standard gets higher and higher. The Golden Whisk is a brilliant way to celebrate the creativity and expertise across our education catering teams. This year’s theme helps teams focus on a particular foodie destination while giving them the freedom to develop their own exciting, taste-bud tingling flavours!” So sharpen those knives, fire up those flavours, and start planning your global menu adventure… Keep your eyes on Grapevine for entry details and updates. Let the cooking games begin, #TeamMellors! What Our 2024 Winner, Mounia Lounes said… We caught up with our 2024 Golden Whisk winner, Mounia Lounes, who impressed the judges with her main dish of bourak — a traditional Arab pastry filled with spiced meat and wrapped in delicate layers of pastry, prepared using a treasured recipe passed down from her grandmother. Since winning Golden Whisk, Mounia has progressed within Mellors and gained international recognition, attracting attention from UK regional and industry media — and even appearing on television in her home country of Algeria. Her success has truly skyrocketed following her win. Reflecting on her experience, Mounia shared:” “It is a favourite of my family and friends, both here and back home. The experience has been absolutely wonderful — I still can’t believe I won! The Golden Whisk competition has taught me to never give up and to keep striving right to the end.” She also encouraged future participants, saying:“My advice to anyone thinking about entering this year is to just go for it. Taking part in this competition is a fantastic opportunity. If you have a passion for food, I highly recommend it.” Mounia’s attention to detail and presentation truly stood out. Following her success, she hopes to see these dishes featured on the menu for pupils and staff at Laisterdyke Leadership Academy.