A civic centre restaurant, a Bristol tapas bar and a major south of England pub group, were today named as finalists for the Celebrate Local & Seasonal award at the Food Made Good Awards 2019, the Sustainable Restaurant Association’s (SRA) annual industry accolades for the most progressive purveyors of food and drink.
EN_Food, Enfield Council’s in-house restaurant, Poco Tapas Bar in Bristol, a multiple previous winner at the Food Made Good Awards and Young’s Pubs, make up the shortlist for the award sponsored by Fooditude. The menus of these three incredibly different eateries finalists all read like a love letter to their local larder and demonstrate that any operator can champion local producers and their food.
This award is one of 20 that will be presented at a special ceremony on 5th November at Troxy in East London. The Food Made Good Awards recognise restaurants and foodservice operators, as well as the businesses supplying them, whose extraordinary accomplishments in the last year are helping diners use the power of their appetites wisely.
The Celebrate Local and Seasonal award, sponsored by Fooditude, is designed to recognise the foodservice business demonstrating real innovation to make the most of the larder on its doorstep, championing the food heroes who work tirelessly to supply them as well and their quality produce, as well as creating flourishing food networks.
Last year’s winner of this category was FoodSpace, the Dublin-based caterer which created a 50-mile menu for each of its 12 sites.
The Food Made Good Awards recognise restaurants and food service businesses whose accomplishments in the last year have driven progress in the industry and demonstrated that all food can be made delicious, ethical and sustainable. The shortlist is a treasure trove of concepts proven to make a positive difference. Every operator can find at least one great idea to try in their business.
Raymond Blanc, OBE, President of the SRA, said “The whole world and kitchens across the UK are waking up to the climate threat. The Food Made Good Awards are the perfect platform for shining a light on those kitchens and the teams working in them, that are using incredible creativity and taking risks to help their customers make food choices that are good for them and the planet. Every chef and restaurateur will take inspiration from this shortlist of dozens of inspiring ideas and initiatives successfully implemented by their industry colleagues.”
The Celebrate Local and Seasonal award is one of ten categories that align with the ten key themes of the SRA’s Food Made Good sustainability framework. Operators fulfilling all ten meet the very definition of a good restaurant or foodservice business. A full list of categories and the shortlisted restaurants are available below.
Melissa Hemsley who will be hosting the ceremony, said: “I am excited about presenting the Food Made Good Awards and I can’t wait to discover, and of course reveal, all of the incredible winners when it comes to the big night on 5th November.”
In addition to the ten themed awards, there are a further ten categories including the People’s Favourite Restaurant. Readers of delicious. magazine have been voting for the five restaurants on the shortlist: café-ODE, Fodder, Poco Tapas Bar, SpiceBox and Yeo Valley Canteen.
Raymond Blanc’s Sustainability Hero 2019, will also be revealed at the ceremony, following in the footsteps of the likes of Jamie Oliver, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and the 2018 winner, Tim Lang.