Hundreds of residents have voted in this year’s St Albans and Harpenden Food and Drink Awards, and the shortlist of finalists has now been revealed.
The final list of nominees for the 2015 awards are as follows:
Best Bar: Dylan’s at the Kings Arms, Mokoko Cocktail Bar & Grill, The Snug.
Best Independent Food/Drink Shop: BEER:shop, Buongiorno Italia, Parker & Vine
Best Café: Barrisimo, Canteen, Bakehouse
Best Newcomer: Craft & Cleaver, Dylan’s at the Kings Arms, The Great Northern
Best Local Producer: Hedges Farm Shop, Farr Brew, Redbournbury Mill
Best Local Restaurant: Dylan’s at the Kings Arms, Lussmanns Fish & Grill Restaurant, THOMPSON @ Darcy’s
Best Pub: The Boot, Dylan’s at the Kings Arms, Great Northern
Best Takeaway: Godfrey’s Fish & Chips, Hatch, Lebanese Kitchen
Most Family Friendly Venue: Inn on the Park, Nice, Relish Real Burgers
Kate D’Arcy Award for customer service: Charlie Powell of Charlie’s Coffee & Company, Johnny Shepherd at The Pudding Stop, Sean Hughes of Dylan’s at the Kings Arms.
Now that the shortlists have been created by public vote, steering group members will visit the shortlisted venues anonymously to judge them against specific criteria for each category. Family-friendly venues for example will be visited with children, and “locally sourced” ingredients will be checked at venues claiming to use them.
The winners of each category will be revealed at the glittering Festival Awards Dinner in Sopwell House Hotel on Monday October 5. The finalist who wins the most award categories will be proclaimed the Food and Drink Champion 2015.
Cllr Beric Read, portfolio holder for community engagement and localism said: “Congratulations to each of the businesses who have reached the finals of this year’s St Albans and Harpenden Food and Drink Awards. Every year the quality of the food and drink scene in our district gets better so it is a fantastic achievement to have reached the finals by popular vote.
“Before we discover who has won awards, there is the Food and Drink Festival to enjoy. So I encourage everyone to get their festival brochures and prepare to try some of the appetising events and activities.”
The 2015 St Albans & Harpenden Food & Drink Festival, which is supported by the Herts Advertiser as media partner, starts on Tuesday September 22 and offers a fortnight of tasty events throughout the district.
Festival brochures are available from the Civic Centre, libraries, leisure centres, St Albans Tourist and Information Centre, Harpenden Information Point and participating venues. You can also download the brochure from the website.
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