A Jamaican restaurant has been crowed the best takesway in the UK and Ireland as the Uber Eats Awards announced its 2024 winner.
Natty’s Jerk, which is based in Bournemouth, Portsmouth and Southampton, has been crowned the winner at the restaurant awards in London this evening.
The family-run business, which offers the likes of jerk chicken, jerk pork belly, jerk jackfruit and Jamaican fried dumplings, won £100,000 to fuel their future growth, after taken part in the competition for a third year running.
Their impressive menu helped them win over a panel of judges, Uber Eats General Manager Matthew Price, street food expert Kieran Monlouis (known as @FoodyFella), and last year’s winner, Josh Kleiner of Sandwich Sandwich.
Owner Natty Crutchfield was awarded the £100,000 by renowned chef and broadcaster Andi Oliver, after being selected as one of 12 finalists from a field of over 130 restaurants.
Following an intense final judging day, Natty’s Jerk emerged victorious, joining Sandwich Sandwich in the elite circle of Uber Eats Restaurant of the Year winners.
Sandwich Sandwich’s success since their 2023 win has been meteoric, with the opening of their first London location and recognition from celebrities like Tyson Fury and Gordon Ramsay. Now Natty’s Jerk is poised to embark on a similarly exciting journey.
In addition to the grand prize, Uber Eats also honoured several restaurants for their outstanding contributions to the industry.
Natty’s Jerk, which is based in Bournemouth, Portsmouth and Southampton, has been crowned the winner at the Uber Eats Restaurant awards in London this evening
Judged by food industry experts including Prue Leith, Douglas McMaster, owner of Silo, James Lee, Partner at Waitrose, and Sophie Pritchard, Food for Life, the Trailblazer Award recognised restaurants driving positive change in the sector across four crucial impact areas.
Each Trailblazer winner received £7,000 to fuel their business growth, along with a bespoke marketing campaign and in-app support package from Uber Eats.
The food delivery company also launched the latest round of its £250,000 Black Business Fund, aimed at supporting Black-owned restaurants across the UK, the fund will offer 25 small businesses in the UK grants of £10,000 with at least half of the grants going to restaurants outside London.
This years nominated eateries included a vegan Chinese and Detroit-style pizza joint.
The shortlist included 130 restaurants and 40 cuisines, from burgers and chicken to street food and even smoothie places.
The award aims to champion small restaurant business owners, with finalists seeking to impress the judging panel with their ‘hero dish’ in London.
Among the nominated restaurants was Tofu Vegan in Islington, which offers Chinese-inspired dishes with a vegan twist.
Tofu Vegan has a completely plant based menu, with most dishes being made from tofu and mushrooms, or Asian imitation meats made from bean proteins.
The family-run business, which offers the likes jerk chicken, jerk pork belly, jerk jackfruit and Jamaican fried dumplings, won £100,000 to fuel their future growth, after taken part in the competition for a third year running
Natty’s Jerk, which is based in Bournemouth, Portsmouth and Southampton, has been crowned the winner at the restaurant awards in London this evening
Following an intense final judging day, Natty’s Jerk emerged victorious, joining Sandwich Sandwich in the elite circle of Uber Eats Restaurant of the Year winners
Natty’s Jerk started out in 2017, from their home kitchen in Portsmouth and it has since expanded thanks to its popularity
Its most popular options include wontons in a spicy sauce, dim sum, and sweet-and-sour ‘chicken’ for £13.80.
Meanwhile its expert team includes chefs from Sichuan, the Cantonese south of China and the northeastern Dongbei region, so the menu features a range of enticing regional flavours.
Two Detroit pizza joints make the list – Cuties Pies and Fries Detroit Pizza in the South East, and Detroit Pizza in London’s Spitalfields.
At the London outlet, a Detroit large pizza costs £26.99 and is topped with pepperoni, picked jalapeno, honey and parmesan, or you can pay £4.99 for a selected single slice.
Meanwhile Junglees was established in 2021 after founder Nomaan decided to leave his corporate career in law to pursue his passion for food.
Junglees specialises in burgers and wings, even offering a full cod fillet in a burger – dubbed ‘The Codfather’ – for £11.49.
The nominated included a wide variety of cuisines from 12 regions across the UK with a wide range of options on the shortlist.
Brits were able to vote for a customisable toastie restaurant (Grilladh in Ireland), a breakfast sandwich place (Davey’s in the North East) or healthier alternatives, such as Juice Jar in Northern Ireland which offers clean juices, berry bowls and smoothies.
Each restaurant has an individual selling point, such as ANSH in Wales, which has a famous Bari Ddu burger with a black burger bun, filled with Welsh black beef, smoked streaky bacon, smoked cheddar cheese and a seaweed rum sauce for £13.
Matthew Price, General Manager UK, Ireland and Northern Europe at Uber Eats said ‘We created the Restaurant of the Year Awards to spotlight the very best independent restaurants across the UK and Ireland.
‘Small businesses like these make up a huge part of Uber Eats and we want to help every one of them thrive because Uber Eats only succeeds when our restaurant partners succeed’.
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