Crackerjack | Restaurant of the Year

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Everything you need to know about the entrants of Restaurant of the Year 2009, how to vote for them and how the winners will be chosen.

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THERE are plenty of super restaurants in and around Bristol and nothing can quite match an evening of great food, good wine in a perfect atmosphere.

We are searching to find the top contenders across a number of categories before selecting the overall champion as Restaurant of the Year 2009.

Voting
The readers of the Evening Post and users of
www.crackerjack.co.uk/bristol/restaurantoftheyear will be able to vote for their favourite and the category they believe that Restaurant excels in.

The winners
After the closing date for votes – Saturday 3rd October 2009, the three restaurants which receive the highest number of combined postal and text votes in each category will go head to head to fight it out and win their category and ideally be crowned Restaurant of the Year 2009.

The 18 finalists, three per category, will be visited by a panel of judges consisting of three independent Bristol News and Media Ltd representatives. The restaurant will not be given any indication of when they will be visited. The restaurant which receives the highest number of points based on the judge’s visit will win their category. Each restaurant will be marked on a set criteria to include food, specials, dining experience, value for money, beverages and family friendly. The overall winner of the Restaurant of the Year Competition will be the restaurant which receives the highest number of points from the judges across all six categories. The overall winner will be announced on November 5th 2009.

The prizes:
The six category winners will receive a framed certificate highlighting the category they have won, editorial coverage and a photo in the Evening Post and online exposure featuring their pub explaining why and how you they won the category title. The overall winner of the competition will receive a wall plaque at an unveiling ceremony, with editorial coverage.

How to Vote

Details of all participating restaurants, plus their entry details, can also be found at
www.crackerjack.co.uk/bristol/restaurantoftheyear

Postal Entries - Simply complete the voting form printed below. No photocopies accepted. Closing date for postal votes to be received is Wednesday, 6th October 2009.

Text Entries - Voting is simple. There are 6 categories, each with a different text keyword. You can vote for the same restaurant in each of the six categories. The categories are:

Terms and conditions apply; visit www.crackerjack.co.uk/bristol/restaurantoftheyear
Texts cost 50p plus your standard network charge. Lines close at 23:59 on 03/10/09. By using this service you may receive occasional SMS messages from the Bristol evening Post and other companies in the DMGT Group with offers and services that may be of interest to you. You will not be charged for these messages and may opt out by texting STOP to the originating number.
Standard terms and conditions apply; visit www.thisisbristol.co.uk/competitionrules

A Note From Our Sponsors

We are fortunate to have some great eating establishments in and around Bristol. The area boasts a huge and varied range of restaurants, pubs and places to eat. Whether you want to go for Indian, Thai, Mexican, a quick pizza, quality pub food, a late night curry, or a fish dish, you will find a choice of places to eat. Local restaurants are now getting ready to battle it out for the Evening Post Restaurant of the Year competition 2009.

Overall sponsors of the competition – Matthew Clark, were delighted to hear that a fantastic number of restaurants in the region have recognised the benefits of entering a competition well worth winning.

Matthew Clark’s regional managing director in the South and South West, Duncan Baldwin, is pleased that many restaurants have recognised the benefits of entering the competition: “In being part of Restaurant of the Year they are showing their customers that they are proud of the experience they can offer them. Whether that’s through their food and drink offering or service and staff, all these elements are so important to ensure happy customers and repeat visits.” One area which Matthew Clark works a lot on with restaurants is the wine they offer, as not only does wine offer great profit opportunities, but food and wine matching can enhance the customer’s experience: “In having suggestions on your menu or wine list demonstrates the versatility of your wine offering and shows your customers that you are committed to making the experience at your restaurant memorable,” said Duncan. Matthew Clark has a team of wine development specialists dedicated to helping their customers make the best of their wine list and help them to maximise the sales of wine in their outlet.

They work with the restaurant to offer suggestions as to what should be listed to best suit the type of food, always keeping it customer focused and on trend. To find out more about Matthew Clark and the services the company offers, visit matthewclark.co.uk.

“This competition not only gives a real boost to the restaurants’ trade and local economy, but showcases what is really great about this industry and highlights the real gems that are on all our doorsteps.

Good luck to everyone who is taking part.”