Top Awards for the Best Restaurants in Oxfordshire

The winners of the 2015 Oxfordshire Restaurant Awards organised by The In Oxford Group, publishers of Living in Oxford Magazine, and sponsored by Hedges Law were announced at a glittering ceremony at Oxford Town Hall on the evening of 6 October.

Founder of the Awards and Chief Executive of The In Oxford Group,Richard Rosser, said: "This is the fifth year of the awards and in Oxfordshire we are fortunate to have both excellence and diversity on ourdoorstep. This is a night to celebratethe very best in a county which has the finest ingredients and dining that the country has to offer."

The overall 2015 Restaurant of the Year title was awarded to Kay and Mark Chandler at the White Hart, Fyfield, previously shortlisted for awards for the last three years.

Mark and Kay Chandler of the White Hart at Fyfield.

The couple have been at the historic fifteenth century inn for 10 years. Kay was delighted with their double win - they also received the top prize in the gastro pub/bistro category, beatingThe Castle at Edgehill, The Quince Tree at Stonor and The White Horse at Kings Sutton.

Kay said: "We are honoured and excited to receive this prestigious award. We genuinely love what we do and gaining this recognition makes all of the hard work and long hours we have put in worthwhile. We could not have achieved this accolade without the support and hard work of our fantastic team, who share our passion, dedication and enthusiasm. This is the hugest well done we could ever hope to receive!"

The White Hart, just off the A420 and 7 miles from Oxford city centre, is without doubt the perfect pub. It has held two rosettes for culinary excellence for 8 years running and been voted one of the Top 100 Restaurants by the Daily Telegraph and Top 50 Gastropubs by a recent industry poll, but is still somewhere to stop for a good pint of real ale.

Originally a chantry house, the building is more than you could ever want from a country pub - an atmospheric Great Hall with soaring eaves, an original minstrel's gallery, roaring log fires for winter and a terrace for summer. It even boasts a secret tunnel leading to Fyfield Manor.

The White Hart focuses on food which is fresh, seasonal and with excellent provenance. Many of the herbs and vegetables come from their own large kitchen with meat from local farms and fresh fish from Brixham delivered 6 days a week.

The White Hart was voted top restaurant of the year by a team of judges chaired by Alain Desenclos, Ambassador for Belmond Le Manoir aux 'Quat'Saisons where he was restaurant director for more than three decades, and himself a previous winner of the Outstanding Contribution Award. Elvio Freitas and Mourad Ben Tekfa presented the Belmond Le Manoir Award for Excellence toThe Mole Inn at Toot Balden.

Helen Brind, Head of External Development and Partnership at the City of Oxford College (part of Activate Learning) was on the judging panel and led the team of 16 and 17 year-old college students who prepared and served the three-course gourmet dinner. The students are all studying BTEC and NVQs in public services, travel and tourism and hospitality and catering.

Helen said: "It is an amazing event for the students to be involved with, many of whom only started at the college a few weeks ago." The students prepared a menu which not only looked but also tasted amazing, and received a standing ovation from Oxfordshire's top gourmets and restauranteurs.

She said: "The awards are not just about the food, it's about the whole experience: the welcome, thevenue and the facilities. It's about the whole rounded experience.

"It's important to recognise the amazing food we have in the county."

Last year's overall restaurant of the year winner, Shaun Dickens at The Boathouse, Henley-on-Thames was just pipped at the post by Restaurant 56 at Sudbury House Hotel, Faringdon for the county's best gastronomic restaurant award ahead of The Kingham Plough.

Oxford is one of the country's most multi-cultural cities and two of the restaurants shortlisted for Best Asian Restaurant are based in the city, Yeti Nepalese on the famously foodie Cowley Road, and Shanghai 30's. They were joined in the shortlist by TheSnooty Mehmaan in Faringdon. Yeti Nepalese won the top accolade.

Best traditional pub was won by another White Hart -TheWhite Hart at Minster Lovell, beating the Baskerville at Henley-on-Thames and The General Eliott, Oxford.

The public vote, a hugely rewarding category to win, was presented to The Greyhound at Besselsleigh, andTheLiving in Oxford Magazine Editor's Choice went toTheOxford Kitchen whileMalmaison won best service.

In one of the most hotly contested categories, Aston Pottery was presented with the prize for best Express/Deli/Café ahead of Café Aloha and Oxfork.

The ethos behind the awards is not just to celebrate the best dining in Oxfordshire, but also to nurture new talent. Nick Lander, restaurant critic of the Financial Times said: "The restaurant profession is the most open profession in the world. The willingness of chefs to share with other people is phenomenal, and second to none. To underline this, The City of Oxford College Trainee Award marks a huge boost of encouragement at the beginning of Amy Bulgin's career. Amy is an apprentice working at the The Red Lion, Northmoor and the two runners up, James Kenny and Joshua O'Rourke at the Eyston Arms, Wantage.

TheAward of Distinction for his outstanding contribution to hospitality and catering was presented to Donald Sloan of Oxford Brookes University, founder and chair of Oxford Gastronomica.

The beautifully crafted awards were designed by the National School of Furniture and the evening raised £3,500 for British Red Cross, the food supplied by Aldens, one of Oxfordshire's oldest family owned businesses having been established in 1793 with wine supplied by Oxford Wine Company and champagne by Laurent-Perrier.

Nikki Poole, Managing Director of Hedges Law, the headline sponsor said: "I can't think that I've ever been to a more joyous awards ceremony. Whereas some business owners can be a touch blasé about winning awards, these awards clearly meant the world to our winners. Some of them have worked years to get this recognition and the delight was so visible on their faces. It was an absolute pleasure to have been part of such a wonderful event."

Next year there will be a new Award for sustainability, sponsored by Good Food Oxford. To find out more, and to enter next year visitwww.oxfordshirerestaurantawards.co.uk

The Awards

Restaurant of the Year: The White Hart at Fyfield

Best Traditional Pub: The White Hart, Minster Lovell

Shortlisted: The Baskerville, Henley-on-Thames, The General Eliott, Oxford

Best Gastronomic Restaurant: Restaurant 56 at Sudbury House Hotel, Faringdon

Shortlisted: Shaun Dickens at The Boathouse, Henley-on-Thames, The Kingham Plough, Kingham

Best Express / Deli / Café: Aston Pottery Country Café, Aston

Shortlisted: Café Aloha, Oxford, Oxfork, Oxford

Best Brasserie / Gastro Pub: The White Hart at Fyfield

Shortlisted: The Quince Tree, Stonor, The Castle at Edgehill, The White Horse, Kings Sutton

Best Asian Restaurant: Yeti Nepalese, Oxford

Shortlisted: Shanghai 30's, Oxford, The Snooty Mehmaan, Faringdon

Best Service: Malmaison, Oxford

Shortlisted: Restaurant 56 at Sudbury House Hotel, Faringdon, the Kingham Plough, Kingham

Public Vote: The Greyhound, Besselsleigh

Shortlisted: Cafe Aloha, Oxford, Reg's Café, Banbury

Living In Oxford Magazine Editor's Choice: The Oxford Kitchen, Oxford

Shortlisted: Pierre Victoire, Oxford, The Red Lion, Oxford

City of Oxford College Trainee Award: Amy Bulgin from The Red Lion, Northmoor

Shortlisted: James Kenny from The Eyston Arms, Wantage, Joshua O'Rourke from The Eyston Arms, Wantage

Belmond Le Manoir Award for Excellence: The Mole Inn, Toot Balden

Shortlisted: Andrew Hill, the chef at The Red Lion, Britwell Salome, Mike North, the chef at The Nut Tree Inn

Outstanding Contribution:Donald Sloan, Oxford Gastronomica / Oxford School of Hospitality Management

The Sponsors

Main Sponsor: Hedges Law.

A&J Catering; Aldens; B4 Business Magazine; Bean Bags Coffee; Blueprint Imaging; Cereta Drewett photography; City Audio Visual; City of Oxford College; Cognac Frapin; Deliveroo; Goldstar Recruitment; Good Food Oxford; House on the Hill; Isis Creative Framing; Laurent-Perrier; Belmond Le Manoir; Living in Oxford Magazine; NSF; Oxford Event Hire; Oxford Wine Company; OxUniPrint; Passion for Food; The Buzzworks; The Garden; The R&R Collection; The Oxford Bar Company; VOUCH, Wellers.

Ends

Notes for Editors:

The 2015 Oxfordshire Restaurant Awards (www.oxfordshirerestaurantawards.co.uk)

Please credit photography towww.ceretadrewettphotography.co.uk

For further information, interviews and photographs please contact Sarah Airey, The Buzzworkssarah.airey@thebuzzworks.co.uktel 07855 086447.

The Judging Panel

Chaired by Alain Desenclos

Alison Hail, Oxford Professional Consulting

Emma Gascoigne,Chiltern Railways

Hannah Talbott, Corpus Christi College

Helen Brind, City of Oxford College

Jacquie Bugeja, Head of Oxfordshire's Registration and Coroner's Service

Kevin Dudley, Executive Chef, Pembroke College

Daren Bowyer, Newbury Showground

Jo Willett, Oxford Innovation

Kelly Gavaghan, Ridgeway

Louise Johnson, Burford Garden Company

Michelle Brachet, Cognac Frapin

Rebecca Kashti, Darbys LLP

David Gambier, Owner & MD of Great Experience Travel Group

Sarah Wiseman, Owner the Wiseman Gallery

Visitwww.oxfordshirerestaurantawards.co.uk

The Awards were established by The In Oxford Group & Living in Oxford Magazine in 2011

The Awards were hosted at Oxford Town Hall on the evening of Tuesday 6 October 2015

To enter 2016's Awards or for sponsorship details, please contact Richard Rosser on 01865 742211 or visit the Awards website and download an application form.