Spice lovers have until midnight on Friday 30th September to vote for their favourite restaurants for the sixth Asian Curry Awards (ACA).  The awards are open to Bangladeshi, Burmese, Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Middle Eastern, Singaporean, Sri Lankan, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese restaurants and takeaways.

An expanded format sees the creation of new categories for Curry Pub, Buffet Restaurant and Event Caterer.  There is also a separate category of vegetarian restaurants and Middle Eastern and Turkish can enter for the first time.

Last year’s top accolade went to Chef Vivek Singh’s acclaimed Cinnamon Club, which was named Best South Asian Restaurant (Central London).

This year’s winners will be announced at another glittering awards ceremony, at the Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane in London’s Mayfair on Sunday 23rd October 2016. Curry fans can vote by:

These are tough times for ethnic restaurateurs, facing increasing competition and severe chef shortages, with 600 curry restaurants having closed in the past 18 months, according to figures from Kingfisher Beer.

Yawar Khan, Chairman of the Asian Curry Awards said: “To survive and thrive, restaurant owners must respond to customers’ changing tastes and chefs need to innovate and produce exciting, healthy and authentic dishes that today’s discerning diners demand.”

These awards are designed to recognise the best in this industry and encourage ever higher standards and the next generation of chefs and restaurateurs to join this dynamic sector.

Leading restaurants will be visited unannounced by a panel of judges led by Pat Chapman, editor of the Cobra Good Curry Guide to ensure a truly representative customer dining experience.

Whilst the judging criteria is heavily weighted towards the quality of the food and cooking, additional points will be awarded for ambience, customer service, community involvement and hygiene. The full list of national award categories is as follows:

  • Fine Dining Asian Restaurant of the Year
  • Casual Dining Restaurant of the Year
  • Asian Takeaway/Delivery of the Year
  • Newcomer of the Year (restaurants established less than 3 years)
  • Lifetime Achievement
  • Buffet Restaurant of the Year
  • Curry Pub of the Year
  • Chef of the Year
  • Vegetarian Restaurant of the Year
  • Event Caterer of the Year
  • International Asian Restaurant of the Year

There are also 10 regional awards for the top Asian restaurants in London, London suburbs, South East, South West, East, South Coast, North, Midlands, Wales and Scotland & Northern Ireland.

Nomination forms and details of the whole awards process may be downloaded from the ACA website www.asiancurryawards.com.

What are you waiting for? Get voting!