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 | Coventry and Warwickshire Food and Drink Awards winners 2006 |
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Take one eating establishment located in Coventry and Warwickshire, add great food, a splash of local produce and a generous helping of excellent customer care, and Warwickshire businesses are onto a winning formula! |
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Local businesses in the food industry have been recognised for their commitment to providing excellent food during a glittering awards ceremony attended by over 130 people at the annual Coventry and Warwickshire Food and Drink Awards.
Now in its fifth year, the event, held at the Draycote Hotel near Rugby on Tuesday 17 October 2006, encourages and rewards quality, excellence and the innovative use of local produce.
Food and drink establishments throughout Coventry and Warwickshire contribute an enormous amount to the economy, and their use of locally produced ingredients helps to sustain local businesses. |
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Judges used information supplied by the establishment to short-list entries down to five per category. Each was then given a mystery visit to sample their menu and experience the service. |
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Guests waited with anticipation as BBC Midlands Today presenter Kay Alexander announced the winners, plus highly commended and commended entries across five main categories -
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- Best Restaurant
- Best Café/Tea room
- Best Breakfast
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- Best Ethnic Restaurant
- Best Junior Chef
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| Two additional categories were also awarded with winners being selected from the entries received for the 5 main categories -
- Excellence in Quality and Customer Service
- Champion of Local Produce
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|  | | And finally all the eating establishments were given the opportunity to nominate a local producer that they use, for the award of -
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In total 15 awards and framed certificates were presented to winners, including highly commended and commended winners. All received a magnificent glass trophy with the name of their business and award category in which they had won. |
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Best Restaurant Category |
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Winner! - Queans Restaurant
This Royal Leamington Spa restaurant opened in 2005 and is run by experienced head chef and proprietor Laura Hamilton, renowned from past establishments such as The Grand Union restaurant and Robbie's in Warwick. Queans offers a unique dining experience as there are no second sittings, so the table is yours for the evening. Coupled with great food and excellent customer service it's no wonder this establishment scored highly with the judges and in fact won two awards. For details of menus and their location see www.queans-restaurant.co.uk.
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| Highly Commended | | Ryton Organic Gardens - This restaurant actually won last year's Best Restaurant Award and has become rightly famous for the quality of its food. It continues to excel and is well worth a visit. See www.gardenorganic.org.uk for further details.
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| Commended | | The Bell Inn - This popular dining pub at Welford on Avon is an old 17th century inn set deep in the heart of the Warwickshire countryside. With exposed beams, flagstone floors, oak furniture, open fireplaces and a warm welcome it's no wonder the judges rated this establishment. See www.thebellwelford.co.uk for further information on the inn.
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Best Café/Tea room Category |
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Winner! - Compton Verney
Life doesn't get much better for the staff at this already award winning art gallery near Stratford upon Avon. As well as previously winning a tourism award, they have now added the Best Cafe/Tea Room in the county to their impressive CV. And rightly so. Their use of local producers and suppliers as well as the excellent quality of food and customer service was clearly noticed by the judges. See www.comptonverney.org.uk for details.
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| Highly Commended | | Thomas Oken Tea Rooms - These tearooms, located where the Dolls House Museum used to be in Warwick, have gone from strength to strength. Noted for their fantastic intimate atmosphere coupled with great food (their cream teas are especially excellent). Visit them in Warwick, opposite Church St. See www.thomasokentearooms.com for details.
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| Commended | | Hatton Locks Cafe - Set in a gloriously relaxing location by the Grand Union Canal near Warwick, the cafe uses produce from small local suppliers and stocks a number of excellent cheeses, jams, apple juices and even smoothies. See www.waterscape.com/hattonlockscafe for details.
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Best Breakfast Category |
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Winner! - Leathermill Grange Country Guest House
Perhaps one of the best breakfasts you'll ever have? They certainly come close - with choices such as freshly squeezed orange juice and delicious porridge that is cooked for twelve hours, or a full English breakfast using locally made produce or smoked haddock completed with toast, home made marmalade and a range or beverages. This is certainly the perfect start to any day. See www.leathermillgrange.co.uk for details on this hotel in Nuneaton.
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| Highly Commended | | Ryton Organic Gardens - As well as their exceptional evening meals, their breakfast is also a taste worth experiencing. See www.gardenorganic.org.uk for further details.
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| Commended | | Lea Marston Hotel & Leisure Complex - Offering a wide selection of excellent food from which to choose. Well worth checking into the hotel just for the breakfast! See www.leamarstonhotel.co.uk for details.
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Best Ethnic Experience |
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Winner! - Arden Tandoori
This category was by far the most closely fought and included a number of previous award winners. Arden Tandoori however rightly claimed the top spot with the quality of their service and excellent choice of tandoori's and Indian cuisine. All set in an cosy restaurant. See their website at www.ardentandoori.co.uk for details.
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| Highly Commended | | Agra Palace - A previous award winner based in Nuneaton that serves fine food in a great atmosphere . See their website at www.agrapalace.com for details.
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| Commended | | Turmeric Gold - Set in a four hundred year old building in the heart of medieval Coventry, this restaurant offers fabulous surroundings in which to enjoy their top quality food. See their website at www.turmericgold.co.uk for details.
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Best Junior Chef |
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All entrants to this category were involved in a 'cook-off' at Henley College and had to create two mouthwatering dishes in a mere 45 minutes!
Winner! - Ross Rochelle of the Mallory Court Hotel emerged as the best junior chef by cooking two fantastic meals to claim this prestigious honour. Definitely a chef to watch out for in the future. Visit www.mallory.co.uk/dining for further details of where he works.
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Excellence in Quality and Customer Service |
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Winner! - Queans Restaurant
Their second award of the evening. The judges really felt that the restaurant offered a unique experience and that their customer service excelled.
For details on the restaurant and location see www.queans-restaurant.co.uk.
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Champion of Local Produce |
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Winner! - Hoar Park Farm Restaurant
The last award of the evening went to Hoar Park Farm Restaurant who showed excellent use of local produce throughout their scrumptious menu. See www.hoar-park.com/restaurant for details. |
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Best Local Producer |
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Winner! - Fowlers Forest Dairies
Fowlers are one of the oldest cheese making family business in England and are continuing the traditions of handcrafted cheeses at their dairy near Tanworth in Arden. The same care and traditional skills, handed down since before 1840, are producing award winning cheeses today. Fowlers take pride in their environment and animal welfare standards. All their cheeses are suitable for vegetarians and are G.M.O. free. See their website at www.traditionalcheeses.co.uk for details. |
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The Coventry and Warwickshire Food and Drink Awards 2006 are organised by the Coventry and Warwickshire Food and Drink Steering Group. Members include the County, Borough and District Councils, CVOne, Heart of England Fine Foods, Henley College, the Chamber of Commerce and Business Link, and the Regional Centre for Tourism Business Support.
The awards help in raising the profile of Food businesses within the county, and of those that support the local economy by buying locally.
Congratulations to all those who entered the awards or supported the event this year.
For winners from previous years, please see the Coventry and Warwickshire Food and Drink Awards pages
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