Northants curry house takes away regional chef of the year title at national awards

Chefs at a Higham Ferrers curry house are celebrating after being named as best in the region at the Asian Restaurant and Takeaway Awards (ARTA) ceremony.

The Spice Lounge in High Street was awarded the title Regional Chef of The Year for the East Midlands to Salim Khan at a red carpet event in London.

Rewarding excellence, craft, creativity, and great taste the awards bring the UK’s most prestigious Asian restaurants and chefs together under one roof.

Mohammed Rahman, director of the Spice Lounge, said: “We feel absolutely proud of this achievement for our staff and customers.

"It was a brilliant night and a proud moment when they called our name – we jumped up and cheered. Winning this award gives me a lot of pleasure.”

Restaurants were awarded based on three key factors, quality of food, quality of service, and value for money, with food hygiene ratings and online reviews adding weight. Restaurants that made it through the gruelling first phase were invited to participate in a cook-off competition.

Salik Mohammed Munim, founder of the ARTA Awards, said: “The ARTA Awards 2022 are a celebration and recognition of Britain’s vibrant Asian restaurants, takeaways, and chefs. Since the inception of ARTA, we have clearly seen the phenomenal quality of entrants, and the bar set by each and every nominee has been increasing each year.

"I am truly blown away by the standards set by the competition and having been privy to exceptional quality and service extended by the nominees, I can confidently assert that Asian culinary industry in Britain is in safe hands. Every nominee and winner should be proud of their work.”

Finalists were chosen based on survey data of more than 700,000 customer base of ARTA’s strategic partner ChefOnline, followed by a final judgement of an esteemed judging panel to crown each region’s South Asian excellency.

More than 2,370 restaurants and takeaways across the UK were nominated by restaurant goers.

The grand award of National Champion of Champions was awarded to Ruby in Hertford, while My Delhi Indian Streetery in Newcastle-upon-Tyne won the National Chef of The Year 2022.

Bombay Cuisine in Prestwich, Manchester won the accolade of National Takeaway of The Year 2022, and Tamasha in Las Palmas in Spain was crowned European Restaurant of The Year 2022.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was conferred to Muquim Ahmed, a successful restaurateur known as the ‘King of Brick Lane’.

Salik Mohammed added: “ARTA 2022 is extremely special for us, as it has returned after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. The gathering was emotional and symbolic, as it brought together members of the Asian cuisine industry during an exceptionally difficult and testing time.

"The cost of energy crisis is a real threat to the sector, and many are faced with the prospect of closing doors after having served their local communities and patrons for decades. This has been a back-to-back assault on the sector, which was recently reeling and recovering from the pandemic, and staffing shortages post-Brexit. It was a poignant moment for us all, to be together and extend moral support and well-wishes. I truly wish us all the very best.”