Until midnight on Monday, October 24th, you have the chance to vote for your favourite shortlisted takeaway in your region to go through to the finals of the British Takeaway Awards, which take place in London in early December. For this final stage of the voting process, the UK has been divided into thirteen regions, with each region’s top takeaways having been narrowed down to just ten businesses.
Here in the South West, the shortlist includes independent takeaways offering a range of different cuisines, and from all over the region – and by voting for your favourite, you’ll have the chance to net yourself a cool £1,000.
Not sure who to vote for? We’ve spoken to those who made the South West shortlist, and asked them a few questions that may help you to decide…
Gurkha’s Kitchen, Plymouth
Manager Laxman believes that Indian and Nepalese restaurant Gurkha’s Kitchen should go through to the final. “We’re very proud to have been shortlisted”, he says, “We can’t believe we’ve done it! We’re so happy to be through to this stage.”
Why should we vote for them? “We’ve worked very hard to grow the business”, he says, “and our customers are very happy: our food is good, we have a food hygiene rating of five, and we’ve become known in our local community for our work with local charities.”
Smokey’s American Grill, Trowbridge
Kelly co-owns Smokey’s with her husband, and they can’t believe they’ve been shortlisted. “For me and my husband, it’s the biggest achievement we’ve ever had – bar having our children!” The pair are just 32 years old and only 6 weeks ago welcomed the latest addition to their family – it’s hard work combining the business with family life, but as Kelly says, “things like this make it worthwhile!”
Why should we vote for them? “We put our life and soul into the business”, she says. “We’re honest, hard-working and put pride and effort into everything we do. We use local produce so that we can support other local businesses around us, and it would mean so much to us to win! We’re currently in the middle of opening another Smokey’s in Warminster, and this award would top the year off!
The Cornish Pizza Company, St Agnes
We feel guilty for interrupting owner Jon’s weekend off when we spoke to him, but his excitement about the awards was clear. He says, “It’s an honour and a privilege to be named as one of the top 10 takeaways in the South West. These awards are so important to us: for kudos for our business, to remind people in Cornwall that they have an outstanding pizza place on their doorstep – and it’s a fantastic marketing opportunity too! If we do get to the finals it’s a fantastic day out in London – we don’t get to do that often!
Why should we vote for them? Jon is confident in the quality of their offering. “I genuinely believe that we can match anybody in the country for the quality of our pizza”, he says. “We have been finalists and winners of other awards, and people consistently tell us that we serve the best pizza they’ve had outside of Italy. Our shop in the Cornish village of St Agnes offers great pizza, nice friendly service and a very strong brand, but we also do things a bit diferently – we lend a strong Cornish twist to what we do. We’re all about good flavour combinations with our own twist on the toppings: we use lots of local Cornish cheeses, and our Italian sausage and spicy beef are made especially for us by our local butchers: it’s all about using ingredients that you wouldn’t normally expect anywhere else.
Minnies Eatery, Exmouth
Manager Mike is thrilled that Minnies Eatery has been shortlisted. “It means a lot – we’re pretty chuffed about the whole thing. We’ve worked hard to get the votes, and work hard to make the business a success.”
Why should we vote for them? Mike says, “We’re just very nice people, and we sell good products! We’re right in the centre of Exmouth, so we’re very prominent. We think what we do, we do very well – and so do our customers!”
Marmaris Kebab & Pizza, Barnstaple
We spoke to Louise, who co-owns Marmaris with her husband, who said, “It’s incredible that we’ve been shortlisted – it’s basically showing that our hard work in the last four years is paying off. We have incredible support from our customers.”
Why should we vote for them? “Our food is very good”, says Louise. “We’ve got very very good reviews on our Just Eat app and we like to treat each customer as an individual. We have a very friendly rapport with our customers and we’re a family-orientated shop – we’re friends with our customers as well as serving them food.”
Nacho Cheese, Trowbridge
Lorraine co-owns Nacho Cheese with partner Adrian, and says that being shortlisted means everything to them. “Last year we went to the finals”, she says, “and to get this far again this year means we’re obviously doing something right – we loved it last year, and it was a massive boost to our business. We’ve just set up a new restaurant with a big outlay and overheads, and to win would do us the world of good. Trowbridge is only a small town – it’s great to see that these awards aren’t just about the big cities!
Why should we vote for them? “We’ve always had really good reviews on Just Eat”, says Lorraine, “and we were even voted third in the country in the Just Eat Tried and Tested awards! We make everything in-house: all of our sauces, absolutely everything from scratch. We’re a real Nacho Cheese family too: all of our drivers are friendly, and we often meet our customers out in the town – it’s just lovely. Our customers love a chat, and they enjoy the consistent quality of our homemade food too.”
Pimms Pizza, Bristol
Manager Alison tells us that Pimms Pizza made the shortlist last year, and won the South West regional heats. “It’s very rewarding”, she says, “and nice to know that people do care about what we do and take the time to vote!”
Why should we vote for them? “We’d love our customers to vote for us as a show of appreciation if they enjoy our food. For us, it would be the most rewarding way to hear what our customers think.”
Masala Indian Takeaway, Barnstaple
We spoke to manage Monzur, who tells of how Masala in Barnstaple made it to the finals last year. “Obviously, to be shortlisted again is a really good feeling”, he says. “We feel like we’re putting in the effort, and it’s good knowing that customers appreciate our food – it’s good to have that recognition.”
Why should we vote for them? “We’re a family business that’s been operating for a long time. We put lots of care and attention into creating the best possible food with quality ingredients. We would love our customers to vote if they feel that they’re getting exactly what they expect from the food that we make.
Papa Raj, Plymouth
Zak, who manages Papa Raj, is an awards pro. “This is a really big achievement”, he says. “We’ve won the South West Takeaway of the Year for five years at the English Curry Awards – but we think that this is even bigger!”
Why should we vote for them? Zak is confident that their quality shines through. “People know we do the best food in the South West!”, he says. “The quality of our food is always excellent, always consistent, which is why our customers come back again and again.”
New Jumbo Takeaway, Exeter
Refused to comment.
To place your vote, visit the British Takeaway Awards website. Voting closes at midnight on October 24th – and don’t forget, you have a chance to win £1,000 just by voting…