Great British Menu (GBM) returned to our screens on 24 February 2026 for season 21. The BBC2 show puts the nation’s most talented chefs to the test. At Women in the Food Industry we are continuing our series of interviews with the strong female line-up of chefs from across Britain competing to serve their dish at the final banquet. Our co-founder, Mecca Ibrahim, interviewed Abbie Hendren Head Chef for Great British Menu Veteran Sally Abé at her new restaurant Teal by Sally Abé.
Born in London, with part of her childhood spent in Australia, Abbie draws on a broad range of influences. She joined Sam’s Waterside as Sous Chef in late 2023 and was soon promoted to Head Chef, reflecting her skill, leadership, and creative approach in the kitchen. She has also worked at The Glasshouse in Kew, La Trompette in Chiswick, and The Petersham Hotel in Richmond, where she developed her love of fine-dining and deep understanding of seasonal British produce.
How did you start working in the food industry? And where did you train to be a chef?
I started very young. When I was about 15, I walked into the Falcon Hotel in Uppingham with a printed CV – very old school – and asked at reception if they had any chef jobs going. Somehow it worked, and I was offered a start in the kitchen.
My first role was on the kitchen porter section, which was pretty brutal. I spent two weeks washing up and it felt like a bit of a test of endurance. Looking back, I think they wanted to see if I could handle the pressure before letting me move into the kitchen. Eventually I asked if I could try working on larder, and they agreed, so that’s how I properly got started.
I’d actually wanted to be a chef since I was around 13. I used to watch all the cooking programmes – Great British Menu, MasterChef and anything like that – and something about it just clicked for me. From quite a young age I knew that was the path I wanted to follow.
After finishing my GCSEs, I went to catering college at New College Stamford in Rutland for two years. There was the option to stay on for a third year, but by that point I felt I was learning more from being in a real kitchen than in the classroom. With college training behind me and a couple of years working in a pub kitchen, I decided to take the plunge and move to London – it felt like that was where the real opportunities were.
This is your first time on Great British Menu, how did you get onto the show?
It actually started with an Instagram message from one of the producers, Avril. At first I assumed it couldn’t possibly be real, but she left her number and asked me to give her a call, so I did — and it turned out she was completely serious.
We ended up chatting for quite a while and she talked me through the whole process. From there I did a sort of screen test with her that lasted about an hour. It was really relaxed — we mostly just talked about food, my background and my cooking, a bit like this conversation.
After that I moved through the rest of the audition process. It’s actually quite a long and fairly intense process behind the scenes, but it all started with that unexpected message landing in my inbox.
How did you prepare for the British Movies theme?
To prepare for the theme, I started by thinking about the films I’d loved growing up. The first one that immediately came to mind was Harry Potter. I’m from the generation that queued outside bookshops waiting for the next book to come out, so it felt like a natural place to begin.
From there I wanted to focus on films that felt unmistakably British. I was keen to avoid anything that felt too Hollywood-influenced and instead celebrate movies that are really rooted in British culture. That’s how James Bond made the list — it’s such an iconic British franchise — and I also chose Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels because I’ve always loved Guy Ritchie’s films. His gangster movies have such a distinctive style, and they felt like great inspiration for the brief.
It’s your first time on Great British Menu. How did you find working in the studio with all the cameras and crew?
I’m actually quite camera shy and fairly introverted, so the idea of being filmed was quite intimidating at first. In fact, when I was first asked to take part, I did briefly consider saying no because I wasn’t sure I’d be comfortable in that kind of environment.
But at the same time, I knew what an incredible opportunity it was for my career, and being asked to take part felt like a huge honour. In the end I decided to push myself out of my comfort zone – and I’m really glad I did.
The whole production team were so supportive and welcoming. The first few hours are a bit nerve-racking, of course, but once the cooking starts you become completely absorbed in getting everything done on time and you almost forget the cameras are there. If anything, I was probably more of a challenge for the camera crew because I move around the kitchen so much!
Without giving anything away about what happens on the show, which course was the hardest to prepare and research for?
The fish course was definitely the most challenging for me. Fish is probably my weakest area personally, so that already made it a bit more difficult.
My approach to the brief was to choose the films I wanted to represent first, and then build the dishes around them. I’d already decided I wanted to use James Bond for one of the courses, and I knew that would likely be the fish dish. The tricky part was finding a link that felt natural and meaningful without letting the concept take over.
I was really conscious that the food itself should always be the focus. I didn’t want to rely too heavily on props or gimmicks — the dish had to stand on its own. So finding that balance between the brief and the cooking probably made the fish course the most challenging one to develop.
GBM is very much known for its props, did you embrace the props on the show?
I did use props, but I was quite conscious about not letting them take over. At the end of the day, it’s a chef’s competition and the food has to be the main focus. The last thing you want is for a dish to be overshadowed by a gimmick.
That said, props are such a big part of Great British Menu, so I did have some fun with them. I think on some courses they worked really well and added something to the storytelling, and on others maybe less so – but I’ll leave it at that!
Which chef that you have worked with has given you the most inspiration?
Without a doubt, the chef who has inspired me the most is Sally Abé. I actually work for her now, which still feels a bit surreal.
I’ve followed her career for years. I used to go to The Harwood Arms and kept an eye on everything she was doing at The Pem and The Bull. I also watched her on Great British Menu and remember thinking how amazing it would be to reach that level one day. Now I’ve done the show myself and I’m working alongside her, which sometimes feels a bit like a fever dream.
She’s a huge inspiration, not just because of her cooking but because she’s a woman who’s built such an impressive career in an industry where there still aren’t that many female head chefs. Seeing someone achieve that really shows what’s possible. Working with her now means there’s still so much for me to learn, which is incredibly exciting.
If you were marooned on a desert island, what was the one type of dish you could happily live on?
Banana bread, definitely. I absolutely love it.
I grew up in Australia for a while and banana bread is everywhere there, so I think it’s something that’s always stuck with me. If I could have an endless supply of toasted banana bread with honey, I’d be very happy.
Ideally I’d also have a white Americano alongside it. If you’re stuck on a desert island, you’d still need a bit of caffeine to get through the day!
Finally, what do you know now that you wish you could have told your younger self when you were starting out?
I think the biggest thing would be to use your time wisely. Spend it in kitchens where you’re genuinely learning and where there’s space for you to grow, and don’t be afraid to recognise when it’s time to move on.
I’m turning 30 this year, which feels slightly terrifying, and when I look back at my career so far I almost see it in chapters – the different places I’ve worked, what I’ve learned and how much I developed during those periods. It really makes you realise how quickly time passes, and how important it is to make sure you’re using those years well.
I’d also tell my younger self not to be afraid of stepping outside my comfort zone. Even now, starting this job with Sally Abe has been a bit intimidating. It’s her first restaurant opening and I really want to do the best possible job. There’s always that little voice of self-doubt in the background asking whether you’re good enough.
But I’ve learned that you have to trust your ability. Look at the evidence of what you’ve achieved rather than focusing on the doubts. Taking part in Great British Menu actually gave me a big confidence boost in that sense. I came away from it thinking, “I did it. I held my own.” Cooking in that environment, in front of cameras, and getting through it was a really positive experience.
So I think the message would simply be: use your time well, keep pushing yourself, and don’t doubt your own skill set too much.
Abbie will be appearing on Great British Menu from Tuesday 7th April 2026 representing London & the South East. Look out for more in our series of interviews with the great women chefs on Great British Menu 2026 – this page will be regularly updated.
