Asian Curry Awards Shortlist Announced Ahead of National Curry Week

By the editor

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.22″][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.3.4″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” hover_enabled=”0″] The eagerly-awaited shortlist for this year’s Asian Curry Awards has been announced ahead of National Curry Week (7th to 13th October).  Top London fine dining London venues listed include: Benares, Darjeeling Express, Hakkasan, Indian Accent, Quilion, Veersawamy and Zuma The winners will be revealed at a glittering awards-ceremony, at Grosvenor House, in Mayfair on Sunday 17th November, The full shortlist, which was determined by more than 100,000 votes from the curry loving public, can be seen at www.asiancurryawards.com A team of judges led by Pat Chapman, the editor and founder of the Cobra Good Curry Guide is now touring the…

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An Interview with Dev Biswal, Asian Chef of the Year

By the editor
Dev Biswal

We had the pleasure of interviewing the Asian Chef of The Year, Dev Biswal recently and it was a great perspective on what it takes to be successful in the highly competitive world of curry. BACKGROUND Dev grew up in Calcutta and studied at catering establishments in India, Dubai and London before moving on to become a partner in The Indian Princess in Margate in 2006. He became the patron of this venue and re-branded it under the new name of the Ambrette in 2010, with a 2nd venue opening in Canterbury in 2013. He also owns the Devil in Rye which not surprisingly is in Rye in East Sussex. STYLE With…

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Voting for Asian Curry Awards opens

By the editor

Gala dinner VIP tickets worth £5000 to be won Spice lovers can now nominate their favourite restaurants and takeaways in this year’s prestigious Asian Curry Awards,  sponsored by Just Eat.  Voters will be automatically entered in to a free prize draw, for a chance to win one of six pairs of VIP tickets each worth £600, to the spectacular gala dinner and awards ceremony, with live entertainment, in London’ West End in November. With two curry restaurants closing each week, against a backdrop of rising costs, skills shortages and Brexit uncertainty – just making the shortlist can give a vital boost to a curry house’s prospects. It is not unknown for award winners…

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Asian Restaurant Awards – The Finalists

By the editor

Winners of the Asian Restaurant Awards will be revealed at a glittering awards ceremony at the Manchester Hilton, on Sunday 23rd June.  Over 500 leading restaurateurs, chefs, food writers and VIP guests, including the Lord Mayor of Manchester Cllr Abid Latif Chohanare, expected to attend the gala dinner.   The evening will be hosted by…

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Zest Quest Asia 2019

By the editor

Good to see Cyrus Todiwala continuing to help British students build their Asian cookery skills. This really is the only route to a sustainable supply of great talent on the UK. If we always rely on overseas chefs being brought in to fill the skills gaps the industry will always…

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Restaurants in Crisis. Really?

By the editor

So last week I got a press release announcing the opening of the nominations of the Asian Curry Awards. Nothing strange there, I’ve received lots of these and have been invited to the awards before. But as I read the release it made me feel uneasy about the direction the…

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Does a Curry Award mean anything?

By the editor
curry awards in the uk

I was recently asked my opinion on a series of curry awards that one curry house was claiming to have won over the years. This started me thinking of all the various awards I have been to and whether they should actually mean anything to Joe Public in their choice of venue. There are a few that are worth mentioning: British Curry Awards – turning a little political for me and needs to go back to the food Asian Restaurant Awards – trying to compete with the BCA and with a much wider range of restaurants but has been a little biased to the South of the UK Tiffin Cup…

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Asian Restaurant Awards shortlist

By the editor

The shortlist has been announced for the first Asian Restaurant Awards, which will be held at the Manchester Hilton, on Monday 5th March 2018. The shortlisted. which was determined by over 100,00 votes from members of the public, can be seen at www.acfederation.org. Bangladeshi, Burmese, Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Middle Eastern, Singaporean, Sri Lankan, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese restaurants and takeaways, were eligible to enter the Awards, which are organised by the Asian Catering Federation (ACF). Leading restaurants are now being inspected by a panel of judges led by Pat Chapman, editor of the Cobra Good Curry Guide. Whilst the judging criteria are heavily weighted towards the…

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Asian Restaurant Awards announces Manchester venue for glittering ceremony

By the editor

Asian foodies can nominate their favourite restaurants and takeaways in the first Asian Restaurant Awards, which will be held at the Manchester Hilton, on Monday 12th February 2018. The awards are open to Bangladeshi, Burmese, Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Middle Eastern, Singaporean, Sri Lankan, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese restaurants and takeaways. The shortlisted will be determined by members of the public, who can vote online at www.acfederation.org/asian-restaurant-awards-2017-nomination-form or by tweeting their choice using the hashtag #AsianRestaurantAwards – citing the @AsianCatFed handle, restaurant name and location. There will also be awards for the best restaurant suppliers, which will be determined by the votes of restaurateurs, chefs and caterers.…

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UK’s Top 30 Asian & Oriental Chefs are feted at House of Commons

By the editor

The nation’s favourite Asian and Oriental chefs, as determined by popular public vote, have been announced by the Asian Catering Federation [ACF]. The top thirty were invited to a special presentation ceremony being held in the Terrace Pavilion of the House of Commons on Monday 15th May 2017. The event…

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The Curry House Crisis

By Roving Reporter
curry houses closing down

The curry house has been part of the fabric of British society for quite some time now, so much so that you would be hard pressed to find a high street in the UK without an Indian, Bangladeshi, Thai or other curry-loving type of cuisine. However this might not be the case for much longer, with curry houses currently closing down at a rate of two a week and industry experts suggesting that up to a third of Britain’s 12,000 curry houses are at risk of closure. There are a number of reasons behind this trend, the competition is extremely high and tight budgets continue to make people think twice before eating out, however the number…

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Restaurant finalists to be announced at House of Commons lunch

By the editor

At last an awards event where there are some recognised judges. I realise awards events need to make money to fund themselves but many simply seem to be an exercise in self-promotion, with no real competition involved. It’s interesting to see that these organisations are at least trying to address…

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