hungryhouse has scooped a prestigious Nectar Business Award, fending off stiff competition from hundreds of successful enterprises to be named “Online Business of the Year, 2011″. We were selected to win by a panel of business experts, including star of BBC1′s The Apprentice, Karren Brady.

Run by Nectar Business, a loyalty programme designed to help small businesses by offering them the ability to earn rewards on their everyday business expenditure, the Nectar Business Small Business Awards were started in 2009 to recognise the cream of Britain’s business talent. As a winner, we received a trophy, £2,000 prize money and 50,000 Nectar points.

Why Karren Brady gave us her vote.

Commenting on why we were chosen for the Award, Karren Brady said: “I was really impressed by hungryhouse.co.uk’s business model, with virtually no overheads it is able to create revenue from the sales of other businesses. As judges, we were pleased to see how quickly Tony and Shane had built a strong network and grown sales figures to date.”

James Frost reflects on why hungryhouse was picked.

James Frost, Marketing Director at Nectar says: “When we launched this award we were looking for a business that has produced exemplary work in the digital business world, and hungryhouse.co.uk is a prime example. The business makes full use of the digital world using its website, social media and app to communicate with customers. The standard of entries to the Online Business of the Year category were particularly high this year, but hungryhouse.co.uk is a worthy winner.”

Managing Director Shane Lake gets a bit emotional.

Shane commented: “We’re jumping for joy that hungryhouse.co.uk has won the Nectar Business Online Business of the Year Award. When Tony and I started out with just a few London restaurants in 2006, we dreamed of our website becoming a household name and winning awards. We’d like to thank Nectar Business and Karren Brady for this acknowledgement of all the hard work the team has put in to get us where we are today. I’m sure the prize money, Nectar points and recognition from winning this award will help us continue to spread the word about hungryhouse.co.uk.”

For more info on the awards check out the Nectar Business awards.

The hungryhouse Team (minus a few people). Note the large glass award Nicholas is holding up. Best quote of the photoshoot, “You know its a proper trophy if you can bludgeon someone to death with it.” – anonymous

The winners of the first ever hungryhouse.co.uk English Curry Awards were announced on the evening of the 25th of July 2011 at a glittering bash at The Sheridan Suite in Manchester. Nominations came in from all over England and the race to be crowned at this year&”s debut awards ceremony was an extremely tight contest.

Managing Director of hungryhouse.co.uk Shane Lake said: &”The awards were a runaway success and have a set a fantastic precedent for the years to come. There was a fantastic turnout and an electric atmosphere inside The Sheridan Suite which represented the vibrant and varied talents within the room. This year&”s awards succeeded in both raising money for a worthy charity and paying tribute to England&”s thriving curry industry.”

Over 700 guests attended the prestigious awards ceremony. The awards were presented by renowned stand-up comedian Jeff Mirza.

And the winners are…

The Restaurant of the Year Award went to Mumtaz, Bradford.

Takeaway of the Year Award sponsored by hungryhouse went to Cafe Masala, Sheffield.

Curry Lover of the Year Award went to The Soldiers Charity.

Best Supermarket Curry Award went to Waitrose.

Team of the Year Award went to Nawaab, Manchester.

Chef of the Year Award Gurpareet Bains, Indian Superfood.

Caterer of the Year Award went to Chak 89, London.

The Best of Manchester Award went to East Z East

ot;float: right; margin: 10px;" src="http://hungryhouse.co.uk/images/news/162/king.jpg" alt="" />Curry King of the Year Award went to Shabir Hussain.

Mr Hussain is a man who embodies the spirit of brilliant entrepreneurship coupled with achieving the highest standards in modern South Asian cuisine. With over 20 years of experience, he is today the proud Chief Executive of over ten restaurants employing more than 400 members of staff. This man works tirelessly to support the local communities&” particularly young people who are inspired by his relentless hard work and dedication in turning his dream into reality.

Lifetime Achievement Award 2011 went to Sanjay Anand.

Mr Anand is known as one of the top Asian caterers in the UK and his cont
ribution to the Indian restaurant industry has been recognised with many accolades throughout his career. Sanjay Anand began his business career at 17 years old and has not looked back since, working hard to create one of the UK&”s most esteemed and acclaimed Indian restaurants in the country, Madhu&”s Brilliant Restaurant. He continues to be an inspirational figure to any young chefs looking to build their own business in the UK.

The Restaurant of the Year regional winners are:

North East went to The Rupali Restaurant, Newcastle.

North West went to ng>Indian Ocean, Tameside.

Yorkshire went to Mumtaz, Bradford.

West Midlands went to Asha&”s Restaurant, Birmingham.

East went to The Curry Queen Restaurant, Cambridge.

London went to Tamarind Restaurant, London.

South East went to 4500 Miles from Delhi, Oxford

South West went to The Eastern Eye, Bath

Regional Takeaway of the Year winners are:

North East went to Cafe Spice, Heaton, Newcastle-upon-tyne.

North West went to Saajan Takeaway, Manchester.

Yorkshire went to Cafe Masala, Sheffield.

East Midlands went to Out Of India, Leicestershire.

West Midlands went to Maliks Indian Takeaway, Chesterton, Newcastle-under-lyme.

East went to Moghul Tandoori, Cambridge.

London went to Tiffin Tin, West Hampstead.

South East went to Tehani, Southampton.

South West went to Papa Raj, Plymouth.

Performances on the evening included: Abbas Hasan, an artist who is proving to be a breath of fresh air within the Asian music indus
try, born in Canada and raised in France, this singer blends the various cultures and influences he has experienced growing up to reinvent Asian music for a new generation.

Romy Shay, known as ‘Mr Bolllywood&”, brought a pop vibe to his sound and used his expressive vocal stylings to bring a new flavour to classic Asian music.

Burgeoning songstress Kiran Dee also performed, combining elements of bhangra, Bollywood and RnB to create a melting pot of modern sounds.

As well as paying tribute to England&”s curry community the event raised funds for our charity partner the Association for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus. We are confident this will be the first of many successful English Curry Awards and we cannot wait to see what next year brings.

NOMINATIONS FOR THE hungryhouse.co.uk 2011 ENGLISH CURRY AWARDS ARE NOW OPEN.

Four nomination categories recognise the devotion, the diligence, and the damn hard work that goes into the creation and consumption of this nation’s greatest dish:

We are giving away 5 sets of 2 tickets to the awards ceremony on Monday, 25th of July at The Sheridan Suite, Manchester. Simply submit your nomination below for a chance to wine and dine with the best in the curry industry!

Terms and Conditions apply

Nominations came in from all over Scotland and the race to be crowned at this year’s awards ceremony was an extremely tight contest.

The winners of the hungryhouse.co.uk Scottish Curry Awards 2011 were announced on the evening of the 23rd May 2011 at a glittering awards ceremony at the Thistle Hotel Glasgow.

Managing Director of hungryhouse Shane Lake said: “The awards proved to be a runaway success with an excellent turnout and a terrific atmosphere. It was a fun and vibrant night, representing the best of Asian cuisine and Scotland’s curry industry. This year’s awards have been successful in raising both money for the Scottish Spina Bifida Association and the profile of the Scottish curry community.”

Over 700 people attended the award ceremony including STV’s Michelle McManus, Mohammed Sarwar, MSP’s Hanzala Malik and Humza Yousuf.

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Glasgow, voted the Curry Capital of Britain last year for the fourth time in the last decade, is well represented this year at the first hungryhouse.co.uk Scottish Curry Awards.

Nominations have come in from all over Scotland and the race to be crowned at this year’s awards ceremony, on May 23rd at the Thistle Hotel, Glasgow, guarantees to be an extremely tight contest.

Managing Director of www.hungryhouse.co.uk Shane Lake said: “Thousands of nominations were received from all around Scotland compounding the love the Scottish public has for Britain’s favourite dish. The competition for awards is fierce, and as title sponsors of the awards hungryhouse.co.uk cannot wait to see the outcome.”

The event is also raising money for charity. Everyone at hungryhouse is proud to able to sponsor this year’s Scottish Curry Awards. Not only are the awards an opportunity for the best in the industry to gain much-deserved recognition, it’s also a chance to raise money for a well-deserved charity – the Scottish Spina Bifida Association.

The night also includes a delicious four course meal, live entertainment, fundraising activities, several guest presenters and guarantees to be a great evening out.

Don’t be sad England, we did not forget about you! In July, we will also be sponsoring the inaugural hungryhouse English Curry Awards, and we need YOUR input. If you would like to nominate your favourite indian eatery for an Award, you can find the online nomination form HERE.

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