This year the 2013 Awards attracted a record total of 270,000 public nominations. Each regional category was awarded a winner, and where appropriate a best newcomer. The winners:
- Best Restaurant Scotland – TAJ INDIAN (Prestwick)
- Best Restaurant North East – AAGRAH (Leeds)
- Best Spice Restaurant North West – INDIAN OCEAN (Ashton-u-Lyne)
- Best Spice Restaurant Midlands – ITIHAAS (Birmingham)
- Best Newcomer Restaurant Midlands – FIVE RIVERS A LA CARTE (Walsall)
- Best Restaurant Wales – RASOI INDIAN KITCHEN (Swansea)
- Best Restaurant South East – HAWELI INDIAN RESTAURANT (Twyford, Berkshire)
- Best Newcomer Restaurant South East – SHAMPAN 4 – THE SPINNING WHEEL (Westerham, Kent)
- Best Restaurant South West – SPICE LODGE (Cheltenham)
- Best Restaurant South West – THE MINT ROOM (Yeovil, Somerset)
- Best Restaurant Central London & City – BOMBAY PALACE (Paddington)
- Best Newcomer Restaurant Central London & City – CHAKRA (Notting Hill)
- Best Restaurant London Suburbs – CHAK 89 (Surrey)
- Best in Casual Dining – THE CHILLI PICKLE (Brighton, East Sussex)
Online takeaway ordering service
To reflect the importance of the takeaway sector there was a new category this year awarded in association with Just Eat, the online takeaway ordering service. This prestigious award was presented to Mushtaqs Indian Restaurant in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, Scotland.
Special Recognition Award
Each year the British Curry Awards also gives the Special Recognition Award to an influential culinary personality and past winners of this award include Madhur Jaffrey, Cyrus Todiwala OBE, Anjum Anand, Heston Blumenthal OBE and Shelim Hussain MBE. This year the award was presented by Enam Ali MBE, Jenny Bond and MP Francis Maude to Dipna Anand, of Southall’s Brilliant restaurant, for her professional successes in the catering industry. In her speech Ms Anand encouraged other women to follow in her footsteps, and attractive women into the industry was indeed a key theme of the evening.
Enam Ali commented: “One issue we have tried to highlight is the lack of Asian women in the curry industry and how there is a gender divide in restaurant kitchens which is considerably male dominated. This year we awarded a very deserving individual on her work in raising the profile of curry in the UK.”