Friday 6th February 2015

Let the battle for the #FoodOscars begin…

Since its inception in 2009, the Irish Restaurant Awards have continued to grow year on year. Nominations doubled from 10,000 in 2013 to nearly 20,000 in 2014. The amount of nominations in 2015 is expected to grow exponentially with the help of our new media partner The Irish Times.

Adrian Cummins, Chief Executive of the Restaurants Association commented; “Interest in the Irish Restaurant Awards has grown year on year, and as our awards are the only in Ireland to have a Mystery Judge element, we can really stand over the entire process. We are delighted to announce our media partnership with the Irish Times.”

The awards are a celebration in the best of Irish cuisine and recognise the hard work that restaurateurs put in all year round. Restaurateurs are entrepreneurs, and to give them something back for their contribution to the hospitality industry is important. The restaurant industry is the biggest employer within the Irish tourism sector, employing over 74,000 people. They should be proud of that, and celebrate their hard work in the coming months.”

Speaking on the popularity of the Awards, Pádraic Óg Gallagher, President of the Restaurants Association of Ireland said, “the Irish Restaurant Awards are the supreme accolade of the restaurant sector, these are the awards everyone wants to win“.

Online nominations open this Friday, 6^th of February at 5pm and will close on Sunday, 22^nd February at midnight.  Nominations can be made via www.irishtimes.com/irishrestaurantawards.

There are 12 main award categories in which the general public and members of the Restaurants Association of Ireland can nominate in. These categories and their respective sponsors are as follows:

• Best Restaurant – Kindly Sponsored by Dalcassian Wine and Spirits
• Best Chef – Kindly Sponsored by La Rousse Foods
• Best Restaurant Manager
• Best Hotel Restaurant
• Best Casual Dining – Kindly Sponsored by Total Produce
• Best Gastro Pub – Kindly Sponsored by Bunzl McLaughlin
• Best Wine Experience – Kindly Sponsored by Classic Drinks
• Best Customer Experience – Kindly Sponsored by ie
• Best Newcomer – Kindly Sponsored by Elavon
• Best Emerging Irish Cuisine – Kindly Sponsored by Odaios Foods
• Best Kids Size me – Kindly Sponsored by Heinz
• Local Food Hero – Kindly Sponsored by Rewarding Times

In the first stage of the judging process, online nominations are given a weighting of 30%, while the remaining 70% is made up from a regional judging panel assessment. Both of these results are combined and reviewed by an independent auditor (BDO) to give an overall county winner per category.  These winners will be announced at a number of regional events held in April.

Each county winner then goes forward to the Regional and All-Ireland series whereby they will then each receive a mystery guest inspection.  They will be assessed on their menu, customer service, and the overall dining experience from the moment the booking is made until the customer receives the bill. Rewarding Times will choose the winner of the Local Food Hero category. Full details on the judging process can be found on the official Awards website www.irishrestaurantawards.com .

The Irish Restaurant Awards 2015 takes place on the 25^th of May 2015 in the DoubleTree by Hilton Dublin (Formerly the Burlington).

ENDS

For more information, please visit:

Website: www.irishrestaurantawards.com
Twitter: @restawards  #FoodOscars
Facebook: www.facebook.com/IrishRestaurantAwards

Adrian Cummins,
Chief Executive,
Restaurants Association of Ireland,
11 Bridge Court, Citygate,
St Augustine Street, Dublin 8.

Mobile: +353 86 8263311

Telephone: +353 1 6779901

Email: awards@rai.ie

Website: www.rai.ie

Twitter: @RAI_ie