The Restaurants Association of Ireland, in association with Admailer.ie from An Post, are on the search for Ireland’s premier foodie destination.

The competition, run in conjunction with Ireland’s largest food awards The Irish Restaurant Awards, will see towns and communities from all over the country battle it out to be named Ireland’s top town for a foodie experience.

The ‘Foodie Town of Ireland’ award will recognise a destination that actively promotes itself through joint promotional activities such as food festivals, gourmet trails or farmers’ markets as well as great dining experiences. The winning Irish town will have established a local producer/supplier network which is utilised and promoted by local businesses.  Plans for future growth and investment into the food and hospitality industry at a local level will also be taken into consideration by judges. Education, training, development and employment will be key components of the ultimate foodie destination.

Communities across the country are urged to get involved and work with local businesses, foodie groups, Chambers of Commerce and other working groups to submit their applications and promote their area to both local people and visitors. The greater the engagement between town officials, the community and the awards process, the greater chances the town has to win the coveted title.

Collaboration is vital for the success of any community based project, and will mean the difference between the winner and runners-up of the ‘Foodie Town of Ireland’ competition. The more people work together on this project, the potential for prosperity and progress will be heightened.

The winning town will be crowned ‘Foodie Town 2014’  at the final of the Irish Restaurant Awards on June 9th, and will receive a prize package worth €5,000 combining an Admailer.ie postcard marketing package and mentorship from senior An Post marketing executives to help raise the profile of their town. The nine runners up will each receive an Admailer.ie prize package to value of €500 each.

Pádraic Óg Gallagher, President of the Restaurants Association of Ireland, says that the rich landscape of the Irish culinary scene will provide an exciting battleground for the competition.

“All over Ireland, local community initiatives are shaping the food, hospitality and tourism industry at ground level. This is our opportunity to recognise these towns and communities for the amazing work they are doing to put Ireland at the forefront of culinary tourism.

Irish people take great pride in their localities and the dynamic nature of the hospitality industry will serve to prove that there are destinations in every pocket of the country worth visiting.”

Amie Peters, Head of Direct Mail & SME at An Post, says that the company are enthusiastic to be involved with the competition.

“An Post and Admailer.ie, the local postcard marketing service, are delighted to support the Foodie Towns initiative. We believe this new awards category will deliver a welcome boost for local tourism throughout Ireland, and we look forward to working with towns and localities on helping them drive new customers into their restaurants and food businesses using Admailer.ie.”

The Award Process

• The application must be submitted by a minimum 3 businesses together.
• Deadline for receipt of application is  Wednesday, April 9^th
• All applications will be reviewed, and a shortlist of 10 finalist destinations will be announced and awarded a certificate.
• The top ten towns/destinations will then be subject to a pre-arranged visit to the town by independent assessors, a representative from the Restaurants Association of Ireland and a representative from An Post.
• A national public voting campaign will also be held with each of the ten finalists canvassing the country to vote for them
• The final decision will be made by combining the judges’ votes with the public vote that carry equal weight – both components account for 50% of the overall mark a town receives.
• The ultimate ‘Foodie Town 2014 will be announced on June 9^th at the final of the Irish Restaurant Awards.

Website: www.foodietowns.ie

Twitter:  @FoodieTowns

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/foodietowns