More than 100,000 members of the public voted for their top Asian restaurant and the winners were announced at the Asian Restaurant Awards at the Manchester Hilton in Deansgate on Monday (5 March 2018).
THE event, organised by the Asian Catering Federation (ACF) which represents the nation’s 30,000 Asian and Oriental restaurants, was attended by 500 leading restaurateurs, chefs, food journalists and VIP guests and hosted by BBC TV news anchor, Barbita Sharma.
The Asian restaurants included Bangladeshi, Burmese, Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Middle Eastern, Singaporean, Sri Lankan, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese restaurants and takeaways.
The winners were chosen by a judging panel that included Chairman Pat Chapman, founder of the Curry Club, as well as Michelin Star Chef and 2006 Chinese Masterchef winner Bill Poon, among others.
ACF chose a Manchester location to make the event more accessible to venues outside London and the south east. Avoiding the term ‘curry’ means the awards reflects the rich diversity among many of the world’s great cuisines.
On 13 March 2018 the ACF will host a special dinner at the House of Lords to celebrate the achievements of the country’s top Asian & Oriental Chefs and to launch the 8th Asian Curry Awards, which will be held on 18 November 2018.
The sector employs over 100,00 people and contributes more than £4.2 billion to the UK economy.
Spice lovers can vote via www.asiancurryawards.com.
The National best in their class were as follows:
Manchester
Asha’s – Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year
Istanbul – Best Turkish
Ziya Restaurant – Best Bangladeshi
The Naz – Best Indian
Nawaab – Best Buffet Restaurant
Sigiriya, Altrincham – Sri Lankan restaurant – Gourmet Restaurant of the Year
North of England
Aagrah Group – Best Chain
Royal Nawaab – Best Event Caterers – North
Scotland
Mushtaqs Hamilton – Just Eat Awards for the Best Takeaway/Delivery
Down South
London
Chinese – Hakkasan
Malaysian – Rasa Sayan
Sapna, Southall, London – Best Event Caterers – South
Surbiton, Surrey
Kookoo Best Middle Eastern
Winchester
Palm Pan Asia Best Pan Asian Restaurant;
Royal Urban Kohinoor, Bristol – Best Newcomer
Regional awards went to:
Usha, Burnley – Lancashire
Akbar’s, Bradford – Yorkshire
Light of Bengal, Aberdeen – Scotland, North
Charcoals, Glasgow – Scotland, South
Sopna Tandoori – North Wales
Tipu Sultan, Birmingham – West Midlands
Millennium Balti, Leamington Spa – Warwickshire
Urban Tandoor, Bristol – South West
Moksh, Cardiff – South Wales
Gandhi Best Asian Restaurant – South of England.
Asma Khan (Female), of Darjeeling Express, London and Mohammed Abdul Ahad (Male) of Millennium Balti, Leamington Spa both scooped Asian Entrepreneur of the Year awards.
Abdul Ahad of Nazma Group of restaurants (Scotland) collected a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Thank you Camilla! Enjoy the soup! Mimi x