A FOMER Lymington resident impressed the judges on MasterChef: The Professionals this week.

Chef of 12 years Robbie Jameson, 27, who now lives in London, cooked for Michelin-starred chef, Marcus Wareing, highly reputed chef, Monica Galetti, and MasterChef judge, Gregg Wallace on Monday, November 29.

Although Robbie was eliminated from the competition in his heat, he is grateful for the experience.

He said: “People like Marcus and Monica, and even Greg, are legends in the industry. Being able to cook for these people is an achievement on its own.

“In the time frame that you’re given, it’s not an easy challenge. There is a lot of pressure but it’s an amazing opportunity. If I could change some small mistakes I made with my dishes, I would, but I enjoyed making both of my dishes.

“I was anxious about the episode coming out, but it looked great, and I had my whole family watching as well.”

Lockdown inspired Robbie to apply for the TV show and was a way for him to push his skills further.

Robbie said: “During lockdown there was not so much work going on for everybody in the industry. I did binge watch TV shows as everybody did, and I ended up binge watching MasterChef back-to-back.

“I thought ‘I could do this’ and I went for it. I always try to challenge myself and think ‘what can I do?’.

“It was a great challenge and amazing opportunity.”

Next in the pipeline for Robbie is opening a new restaurant in Mayfair, London.

MasterChef: The Professionals, continues with the Semi Finals, Tuesday, December 7 at 9pm on BBC One.