Czech round of the 'Oscars' for chefs has announced its ten finalists

Patrik Bečvář has worked as a chef at several excellent domestic restaurants, including Zlatá Praha at the Intercontinental Hotel, and Selský dvůr or the French restaurant in Obecní dům. He has cooked for several former U.S. presidents, such as George Bush at Prague Castle and Barack Obama at the residence of the U.S. ambassador to the Czech Republic.
Jakub Fusek is currently the head of the kitchen at Hotel Atlantis, before that he was a chef at the Stará prádelna restaurant near the Veveří castle in Brno and Adam's bar & bistro. He also gained professional experience abroad in Austria, Switzerland, and Germany as well as at top Prague tables at the Four Season Hotel and Cafe Savoy.
František Hrdina has cooked in five-star hotel restaurants (Augustine, a Luxury Collection Hotel, and Kempinski Hotel, both in Prague), and on luxury ocean and river liners. As part of internships, he worked on events in Turkey, India, and the U.S. together with three-star Michelin chef Thomas Bühner. In 2020, he started his journey at the Prague restaurant Červený Jelen, where he worked up to the position of Junior Sous-chef.
Petr Kozma has been cooking since he was 15 years old. After his apprenticeship, he started at the restaurant of the Chateau St. Havel, where he worked for four years. He then joined Ginger & Fred in the Dancing House in Prague, where he still works as chef à la carte.
Ondřej Molina has worked at top restaurants in the world, such as the Michelin-starred restaurant Hibiscus in London, Fiskebar in Copenhagen, or the Grill in Auckland, New Zealand. He has worked with renowned chefs Sean Connolly and Marc Müller. Since 2022, he has been the chef at the trendy British pub Arthur's in Karlín.
Vojtěch Petržela is a two-time Gastro junior winner and winner of the first year of the competition KU Young Chef. Since 2018, he has been the captain of the Junior National Team of Chefs and Pastry Chefs. He is a champion in the area of carving produce. At the age of 21, he became Chef of the Year. Petržela has worked at Hotel Aplaus Litomyšl, Chateau Mcely, and Restaurant Víčep.
David Schlesinger gained valuable professional experience during his internships abroad and work in Czech restaurants such as Hilton Prague, Taverna Olympos, Miminoo restaurant, Radegastovna, Zlatý strom, and La Corte Restaurant in Prague.
Martin Staněk, a member of the National Team of Chefs and Confectioners of the AKC CR, reaped success in cooking competitions as a junior. He worked as a chef in Germany and in the famous Clarion Hotel in Ostrava. In 2014, he strengthened the team of Filip Sajler and his Perfect Canteen, where he worked his way up to the position of Creative Master Chef, which he still holds.
Dominik Unčovský learned from renowned professionals as a novice chef and assisted the Prague Culinary Institute in the creation of cookbooks by Roman Vaňek and Zdenek Pohlreich. In the following years, he worked for well-known venues such as La Finestra in Cucina, Sanscho, and Mánes. He also trained in the kitchens of mountain hotels in the Alps and Jeseníky and completed a one-month internship in India.
Lukáš Velšmíd has been at the helm of the kitchen of Restaurant Bělecký Mlýn in Zdětín in the Prostějov District for the fourth year. He previously worked at Cafe New One in Olomouc and also at several establishments in Scotland and Ireland, including Hotel Meyrick, and the No 15 Restaurant, during the time it was awarded AA Rosettes.