Sandy Park chef scoops Chef of the Year at Food Drink Devon Awards 2025

Devon’s vibrant food and drink scene took centre stage as the 14th annual Food Drink Devon Awards shone a spotlight on the county’s finest, including Chef of the Year and Sandy Park’s head chef Craig Beacham.

From award-winning producers and passionate hospitality businesses to specialist retailers, 470 guests gathered at Sandy Park to celebrate the very best of Devon’s thriving culinary community.

The Food Drink Devon awards celebrate the very best Devon has to offer by recognising and championing the county’s most respected, influential and passionate artisan food and drink producers and establishments.

This year’s ceremony saw the presentation of Platinum and Gold Awards to entrants in the hospitality, retail, producer and sustainability sectors before culminating in 18 overall ‘Best Of’ Award winners across the sectors.

The Chef of the Year Award was presented to Sandy Park’s head chef Craig Beacham.

Jack Pickering, director at Food Drink Devon, said: “The Chef of the Year was awarded to Craig in recognition of his achievements in providing consistently high-quality food for the last three award ceremonies to 450+ people. Craig has also been generous with his time in welcoming Exeter College Students into his kitchen so they could gain valuable experience and play their part in the awards dinner. He is a fantastic and talented person to work with and his food is absolutely delicious”.

Beacham said: “I wasn’t expecting it at all, to be honest. The large events and dinners are great fun to cook for, and there’s always a challenge in pulling them off, so it’s lovely to get that bit of recognition.”

Alongside the awards ceremony, guests enjoyed a drinks reception and canapes in the Estuary Suite before moving into the Exeter Suite for a special bespoke local menu.

All the food served at the awards was sourced locally from Food Drink Devon members with the starter prepared by chef Luke Heaver from The Salutation Inn in Topsham while the main course was the work of Sandy Park’s award-winning Beacham.

The ceremony was followed with an after-party in Sandy Park’s County Suite.

Greg Parsons, chair of Food Drink Devon said “We have returned to Sandy Park for the third year running due to their central and convenient location, their ability to cater for and look after 470 guests and deliver food and service at a consistently high standard. Making them one of the very best event venues in Devon, we are excited to work with them again in 2026”.

Sandy Park is the South West’s leading conference, banqueting and events centre, and home to Premiership Rugby’s Exeter Chiefs and the PWR’s Exeter Chiefs Women, offering unrivalled flexibility for events of all sizes from major exhibitions and gala dinners to meetings and private functions.