Is the food at your local really the best? Does your favourite restaurant serve meals to rival the finest?
Now’s the chance to show your culinary support for your favourite venue among the finalists in the Northamptonshire Food and Drink Awards 2009.

The awards, devised by Northamptonshire Enterprise Ltd, are aimed at celebrating excellence among the county’s eateries and giving a public pat on the back to those owners, managers and landlords who strive to offer their customers the perfect dining experience.
Of the 40 entries from across the county, vying for the title of ‘Restaurant of the Year’ and the ‘Pub or Bar Restaurant of the Year’, a shortlist of 10 entries has now been chosen by a select panel of judges, including David Kennedy, Chief Executive of Northampton Borough Council and Northamptonshire Ambassador – and former restaurant proprietor – Nigel Hollick. Said Nigel “I was very impressed by the number and standard of entries into this competition, especially given that this is its inaugural year. We have some fantastic places to eat here in the county and it’s great to think that these awards will give them the boost they rightly deserve.”

The chosen finalists in the ‘Restaurant of the Year’ category are:
Greens Restaurant and Bar, Northampton
Murrays at Whittlebury Hall, Whittlebury
Oundle Mill, Oundle
The Church Restaurant, Northampton  
The Vine House Hotel and Restaurant, Paulerspury

While the shortlist in the ‘Pub or Bar Restaurant of the Year’  are:
The Olde Red Lion, Kislingbury
The Red Lion, Sibbertoft
The Saracen’s Head, Little Brington
The Walnut Tree Inn, Blisworth
The White Swan, Harringworth

Adrian Booth from Greens Restaurant and Bar, Northampton said “It’s fantastic for all the people who work here.  Our hard work to revise our menus is paying off.”  He added, “These awards are a great way of letting people know about the great food and produce that’s available in the county.”

To show your support, simply log on to www.letyourselfgrow.co.uk from Thursday 20 August 2009 and select your favourite eatery from the shortlist by following the details on the website. You have until mid-September to make your nomination count.  All ten venues will then be ‘mystery shopped’ by two expert judges before the winners in each category are selected and those will be announced at the Celebrate Northamptonshire dinner on 9 October 2009 to be held at Althorp.  Details are available at www.celebratenorthamptonshire.co.uk

The competition’s co-ordinator, Rachel Mallows, of Rachel Mallows: Services to Business said “We have such a high standard of food venues in the county – everything from village pubs offering great bar meals at great prices to haute cuisine to rival anything that the country has to offer. So as well as publicly recognizing the efforts of those who slave over the saucepans on our behalf, we hope that this competition is a reminder to Northamptonshire‘s food lovers that you don’t have to go far to enjoy a meal out that’s first-class!”     

Kate Dent, Head of Tourism at Northamptonshire Enterprise Ltd, said: “These awards will play a vital role in our quality approach to tourism in Northamptonshire. The Northamptonshire Food and Drink Awards are a perfect way of raising the profile of Northamptonshire whilst gaining much-needed publicity and ongoing support for all those who get involved.”

Full list of judges who took part were (in alphabetical order):

Wendy Carter – Shires Cookery School
Mike Coppock – Catering Manager, Northampton College
Nigel Hollick – Northamptonshire Ambassador, Commercial Director, Pollen Brooks Events
David Kennedy – Chief Exec, Northampton Borough Council
Amanda O’Hare – Image magazine
Alan Spooner – Business Times