Our local food and drink heroes were honoured at the Carlsberg Northamptonshire Food and Drink Awards.
The event held at Royal & Derngate saw the county’s top restaurants, pubs, chefs and producers celebrated with awards covering all aspects of the food and drink industry.
The winners were:
Artisan Local Drink of the Year:
Winner: Triple ‘F’ Pure Apple Juice – Floyers’ Fruit Farm, Flore
Runner-up: Bell Ringer – Towcester Mill Brewery, Towcester
New Local Drink of the Year
Winner: Burnt Ox Blood – Nobby’s Brewing Company, Thrapston
Winner: Dream Catcher – Tea Lab Company, Northampton
Artisan Local Savoury Product of the Year (Sponsored by Heygates Flour and Animal Feed)
Winner: Northamptonshire Blue – Hamm Tun Fine Foods, Hannington
Runner-up: Phipps Firkin – Neneview Dairy, Stanwick
Artisan Local Sweet Product of the Year (Sponsored by Moulton College)
Winner: Honey, Lemon and Ginger Marmalade – Nature’s Fayre, Thrapston
Runner-up: Dark Espresso Chocolate – Seed and Bean, Corby
Runner-up: Gooseberry and Elderflower Gelato – Ganders Goat, Cottingham
One To Watch (Sponsored by Whitworth Bros. Ltd Flour Millers)
Winner: Ganders Goat, Cottingham
Winner: Towcester Mill Brewery, Towcester
Hear our interview with the Ganders Goat team on our Listen Again page
Farming Innovation Award (Sponsored by Weetabix Growers Group)
Winner: Mee Farmers, Nassington
Runner-up: Courteenhall Farms, Courteenhall
Healthy Eating Workplace of the Year (Sponsored by Northamptonshire County Council)
Winner: Weatherbys Ltd, Wellingborough
Runner-up: John Lewis Plc, Northampton
Runner-up: Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains, Brixworth
Independent Café / Tea Room of the Year (Sponsored by Pidy UK):
Winner: Workbridge Coffee Shop, Northampton
Runner-up: The Bread & Butter Factory, Northampton
Spice Restaurant of the Year (Sponsored by British Pepper & Spice)
Winner: The Exotic Dining, Kettering
Runner-up: Taste of Spice, Northampton
Restaurant of the Year (Sponsored by Whitco Catering and Bakery Equipment)
Winner: The Folly, Towcester
Runner-up: Tap and Kitchen, Oundle
Booker Food Pub of the Year (Sponsored by Booker)
Winner: The Hopping Hare, Northampton
Runner-up: The Wheatsheaf Pub & Dining Room, Northampton
Great Service Award (Sponsored by Northampton College)
Winner: The Folly, Towcester
Chef of the Year (Sponsored by Dawn Farms and Cordant People)
Winner: Richard Walker – Fawsley Hall Hotel, Fawsley
Runner-up: James Peck (Freelance Chef)
Booker Young Chef of the Year (Sponsored by Booker)
Winner: Victoria Austin – Highgate House, Creaton
Runner-up: Arturs Dzerins – The Hopping Hare, Northampton
Community Pub of the Year (Sponsored by Carlsberg UK)
Winner: The Dukes Arms, Woodford
Runner-up: The Sun Inn, Kislingbury
Weetabix Local Food Hero of the Year (Sponsored by Weetabix)
Winner: Steve Reid of Friars Farm, Northampton
Runner-up: The Good Loaf, Northampton
F&B Achiever of the Year (Sponsored by Howes Percival LLP)
Winner: Tom Warner and Christina Warner-Keogh – Warner Edwards, Harrington
Chairman’s Award
Winner: Alaric Neville – Phipps NBC, Northampton
Hear our interview with Alaric on our Listen Again page
The evening also shone a spotlight on Eat Out Eat Well, a national scheme run here in the county by Environmental Health Northamptonshire which rewards caterers and eateries who make it easier for their customers to make healthy choices, and saw the top scoring Gold venues from five of the seven borough and district councils being celebrated for their achievement. They are:
Mille’s Café, Wellingborough
Mrs B’s in Rushden
Reg’s Café in Kings Sutton
The R Inn Hotel, Tapas Bar and Grill, Desborough
The Stables Café, Althorp