Durham food and drink businesses win awards
Durham food and drink businesses win awards
Posted: 02 Dec 2009
Picture caption: Julia Cammiss with her award-winning Durham blue cheese
More than 40 County Durham food and drink businesses have been awarded a nationally accredited food quality mark from tourism agency Visit County Durham.
The restaurants, hotels, farm shops, cafés and bars have been recognised by assessors from national tourist board Visit Britain for consistently high quality service, authentic regional dishes and support for local producers.
TasteDurham was set up in 2008 by Visit County Durham (formerly the County Durham Tourism Partnership) to raise the profile of food and drink in the county among national audiences and clearly signpost visitors to those eateries serving the best fresh, seasonal and local dishes.
In just its second year, the scheme has seen a 30 per cent increase in the number of businesses applying to hold the food quality mark.
TasteDurham co-ordinator Lucy Wearne, said: “The TasteDurham mark is highly rated among businesses in the county and enables us to shout loudly that Durham’s food and drink offer is among the best in Britain.”
The award-winning businesses received the quality mark at a ceremony held at Seaham Hall Hotel and The Serenity Spa on Monday November 30.
Multi national award-winning cheesemaker Julia Cammiss of the Durham Cow Cheese Company helped present the awards and talked about her journey from making blue cheese on her kitchen table to being stocked in some of the UK’s biggest supermarkets.
The 42 businesses were invited to join TasteDurham and undertake the assessment against strict national criteria for quality of menu, cleanliness, customer service and use of locally sourced produce.
TasteDurham has three levels of award:
Highest Quality Assured - awarded to businesses meeting 80 per cent of TasteDurham criteria.
Quality Assured - awarded to business meeting 60 per cent of TasteDurham criteria.
Local Produce Champion - awarded to those businesses who are strongly committed to using local suppliers and who help develop the growing distribution network for local produce in County Durham.
TasteDurham businesses can earn both quality assurance award grading and the title of Local Produce Champion in recognition of commitment to buying fresh and local.
|
Business |
Location |
TasteDurham Award |
|
Bradley Burn Farm Shop & Café |
Weardale, Durham Dales |
Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Brambles Coffee Shop |
Durham City, Shincliffe |
Quality Assured |
|
The County |
Sedgefield |
Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Durham Dales Centre Tearoom |
Stanhope, Durham Dales |
Quality Assured |
|
The Garden House |
Durham City |
Quality Assured |
|
Headlam Hall |
Teesdale |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Hide Café Bar and Grill |
Durham City |
Quality Assured |
|
Pemberton Carvery, Ramside Hall Hotel |
Durham City |
Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Richardsons Garden Centre |
Seaham |
Quality Assured |
|
The Rose & Crown Hotel |
Teesdale, Romaldkirk |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Seaham Hall & the Serenity Spa |
Seaham |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Sedgefield Racecourse |
Sedgefield |
Quality Assured |
|
The Teesdale Hotel |
Teesdale |
Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Gourmet Spot Restaurant |
Durham City |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Spice Island Restaurant Ltd |
Barnard Castle, Teesdale |
Quality Assured |
|
South Causey Inn |
Beamish, North Durham |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Killhope Kitchen |
Weardale, Durham Dales |
Quality Assured |
|
The Seven Stars |
Durham City |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Knitsley Farm Shop |
Consett, North Durham |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Filini Restaurant |
Durham City |
Quality Assured |
|
Bistro 21 |
Durham, City |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Broom House Farm |
Witton Gilbert |
Qualiity Assured & local produce champion |
|
The Undercroft |
Durham City |
Qualiity Assured & local produce champion |
|
La Tasca |
Durham City |
Qualiity Assured & local produce champion |
|
Café 1618 |
Teesdale, Middleton-in-Teesdale |
Quality Assured |
|
Vennels Cafe |
Durham City |
Quality Assured |
|
The Seaton Lane Inn |
Seaham |
Qualiity Assured & local produce champion |
|
Fallen Angel Restaurant |
Durham City |
Highest Quality Assured & local produce champion |
|
Poppies |
Seaham |
Qualiity Assured & local produce champion |
|
Ozone Restaurant |
Seaham |
Highest quality assured |
|
Pan Din Thai Restaurant |
Seaham |
Quality Assured |
|
The Lambton Hounds Inn |
Durham City |
Quality Assured |
|
Bed and Breakfast Providers |
Location |
Awards |
|
Victorian Town House |
Durham City |
Highest Quality Assured & Local Produce Champion |
|
Newlands Hall |
Frosterley, Durham Dales |
Quality Assured & Local Produce Champion |
|
Polemonium Plantery |
Trimdon Grange |
Quality Assured & Local Produce Champion |
|
Low Urpeth Farm Tourism |
Chester-le-Street |
Highest Quality Assured & Local Produce Champion |
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