Wow! What a superb evening The Boy Wonder and I have had tonight at the Roundhouse in Derby for the eighth Marketing Derby Food and Drink awards. I don’t envy the judges their job on this occasion; they’ve had to go through over 2,500 nominations for 9 award categories and come up with a list of finalists. And what a cracking list of finalists it was
Best International –
Finalist - Lorentes
Finalist – Shalimar Gold
Finalist– The Spice Lounge
Best Café –
Finalist – The Coffee House at Derby Museums
Finalist – Grand Café Caruso
Finalist – Heavenly Desserts
Best Bar –
Finalist – Pitcher and Piano
Finalist – Mansion
Finalist– Hopgate
Best Pub –
Finalist – The Greyhound
Finalist – New Zealand Arms
Finalist – The Exeter Arms
Best Newcomer –
Finalist – The Cosy Club
Finalist – Oliver’s
Finalist – Lisa Jean at Bennetts Brasserie
Best Out of Town –
Finalist – Dovecote at Morley Hayes
Finalist – Anoki Burton
Finalist – Fox and Hounds, Coxbench
Best Customer Service –
Finalist – Anoki (Derby)
Finalist – Dovecote Restaurant, Morley Hayes
Finalist – Grand Café Caruso
Finalist – Mansion
Finalist – Hide
Finalist– The Spice Lounge
Restaurant of the Year –
Finalist - Iberico
Finalist – Hide
Finalist – Masa
Finalist – Restaurant Zest
The host for the evening was radio Derby presenter Andy Potter and his slick delivery ensured a seamless event was enjoyed by all. Prior to the award ceremony there was a small food and drink market to peruse including Canapés from the Students at Derby Colleges Engine Shed restaurant, which were as delicious as they were visually stunning. Kay Wagstaffe a.k.a The Quirky Cook was showcasing her innovative range of chutneys and relishes with Black Garlic. The talented chaps from The Rested Cocktail Company were also there ,as was John Cowings better known as Cacoa Elora handcrafted chocolates (gosh they’re good!)
Best Newcomer (sponsored by Derby College of Business) was won by Lisa Jean at Bennetts Brasserie, who was understandably emotional at the win; I must confess to having moist eyes along with her. The judges said they had had “a lovely experience from beginning to end” when they visited her establishment; high praise and very much deserved, The Man and I were bowled over by the afternoon tea we had there ourselves Read The Review
Best International winner (sponsored by Riverlights) went to the team at Lorentes. The judges were won over by the “outstanding food and customer service” and were impressed by the fact that “the owner went round and spoke to all the customers”.
The Best Cafe award (sponsored by Zest produce) was snapped up by the Coffee House at Derby Museum. Again the judges were impressed with the “staff being more than attentive” and also by the delicious cakes on offer! Believe it or not, this little gem has only been open about 18 months and funds raised go towards the upkeep of the Museum itself.
Xcel Energy (business gas suppliers) sponsors the Best Out Of Town award which was won by the Fox and Hounds at Coxbench. This traditional family run pub offered “a homely feel and we felt welcome from the moment we walked in” said the judges. The owners own opinion is that they are a “Traditional family pub that offers good food and a warm welcome”, and their pride was visible as they accepted the trophy.
The Best Pub award (sponsored by Koobr & eltenedor) was won by The Greyhound, impressing the judges with its great selection of drinks and well executed food. The enthusiastic staff aim to offer food with a twist at this historic pub and are very proud of their fantastic beer selection.
Best Bar, sponsored by Swindell and Pearson, was won by Hopgate having wooed the judges with its “extensive selection of Beers, Wines and Spirits” to offer something out of the ordinary.
The next award, sponsored by The Derby Telegraph & Codesfr.com, is the only public vote category; Excellence in Customer Service. The recipients described it as “an unexpected win”, so if you haven’t been to The Spice Lounge, I think you can be assured of a great night!
Royal Crown Derby sponsors the prestigious Outstanding Achievement Award, this year won by The Beer Hunter (Mr Colston Crawford). This gentleman has written for the Derby Telegraph for an incredible 29 years and sees “a bright future for the City’s Drink scene”, and rather touchingly mentioned his driver, his wife Pamela.
The evening’s last award, sponsored by Marketing Derby Bondholders, was presented by the ever charming Andy from the fantastic Taste the Seasons magazine. To win this award the judges were adamant that “Taste, Atmosphere and Customer service must all be excelled in” at the venues. The winners, Iberico, were “over the moon” to receive the trophy saying it had involved “lots of hard work and they want to keep pushing to keep standards high for Derby people”. Their philosophy of “treating the customer how they would wish to be treated themselves” is obviously the right way to go.
What struck me the most was the sheer passion and enthusiasm all the teams clearly had for their venues; Derbyshire folk don’t do things by halves, we give it our all. On a personal note, I am looking forward to many more culinary adventures at some of these venues that we haven’t visited yet. Congratulations one and all, to have got to the finals meant that you were all at the top of your game, there truly were no losers on this occasion :)
See my full collection of photos here
