An Indian takeaway in Prestwich has just beaten rivals up and down the country to be crowned the best in the whole of the UK.
Bombay Cuisine in Prestwich, Manchester won the accolade of National Takeaway of The Year 2022 at the annual Asian Restaurant and Takeaway awards, taking home the accolade at a celebrity red-carpet event.
Serving up a mixture of traditional dishes like jalfrezi and karahi alongside a wide selection of masala, pasanda, biryani and balti dishes, you’ll also find a long list of house and chef specialities on the menu at Bombay Cuisine.
From Indian cheese kofta to the popular Gujurati dish achari, plus shahi suria, chana walla and murgh musallam, the specials menu is packed with mouthwatering dishes.
Elsewhere you’ll find a special sizzling tandoori section with all dishes barbecued in a special clay oven, as well as a list of ‘Nice n Spicy’ specials for those who aren’t shy of a bit of heat.
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Speaking on their award win, the restaurant told The Manc: “We want to start off by saying a huge thank you to our customers who have nominated us to win not 1, but 2 awards in the north west region.
“Without them, this wouldn’t have been possible and we would also like to thank our customers for supporting us from the very first day we opened our doors in Prestwich.
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“We feel honoured and privileged to have won such a big award and becoming the national takeaway of the year 2022.
“It’s a very big achievement for us and we are feeling so proud of the team behind Bombay Cuisine for the hard work and effort they put in to make such wonderful food to serve the local community of Prestwich and surrounding areas. Thank you.”
Bombay Cuisine was not the only Greater Manchester restaurant to win big, either, with The Milnrow Balti in Rochdale also taking home the Regional Restaurant of the Year award for the North West of England – proving that we really are spoilt for choice in this part of the world.
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Each year, the awards reveal the best of UK Asian cuisine selected from 2,400 nominations from South Asian restaurants, takeaways, chefs, and personalities across the country.
They celebrate the UK’s Curry industry, which contributes £5 billion to the economy annually and, as of 2015, has accounted for a fifth of the restaurants in the UK dating back to the 1800’s.
Image: Bombay Cuisine, Prestwich
Image: Bombay Cuisine, Prestwich
The Lifetime Achievement Award was conferred to Mr Muquim Ahmed, a renowned British entrepreneur who was a successful restaurateur and has spent over 40 years in building a rapidly growing business empire. He is also known as the King of London’s Brick Lane.
The winners were selected by an esteemed panel of expert ambassadors and judges, and restaurants were awarded based on three key factors: quality of food, quality of service, and value for money.
This was followed by the ARTA score, which includes food hygiene rating and reviews from websites like TripAdvisor and Google.
Restaurants that made it through the gruelling first phase were judged and invited to participate in a cook-off competition where they were scored once again on various factors including: flavour, appearance, texture, hygiene and aroma.
Speaking about the Asian Restaurant & Takeaway Awards 2022, Salik Mohammed Munim, Founder of the ARTA Awards, said: “The ARTA Awards 2022 are a celebration and recognition of Britain’s vibrant Asian restaurants, takeaways, and chefs.
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“Since the inception of ARTA, we have clearly seen the phenomenal quality of entrants, and the bar set by each, and every nominee has been increasing each year.
“I am truly blown away by the standards set by the competition and having been privy to exceptional quality and service extended by the nominees, I can confidently assert that Asian culinary industry in Britain is in safe hands.
“Every nominee and winner should be proud of their work.”
The awards also offered solidarity and morale for the industry which is currently facing headwinds including with the high cost of energy, inflation, and the ongoing impact of the pandemic.
Salik Mohammed added: “ARTA 2022 is extremely special for us, as it has returned after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. The gathering was emotional and symbolic, as it brought together members of the Asian cuisine industry during an exceptionally difficult and testing time.
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“The cost of energy crisis is a real threat to the sector, and many are faced with the prospect of closing doors after having served their local communities and patrons for decades.
“This has been a back-to-back assault on the sector, which was recently reeling and recovering from the pandemic, and staffing shortages post-Brexit.
“It was a poignant moment for us all, to be together and extend moral support and well-wishes. I truly wish us all the very best.”
Feature image – Bombay Cuisine
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First vendors confirmed Glossop Market Hall, including two indie Manc traders
Danny Jones
The first vendors for the upcoming Glossop Market Hall have been announced, and the lineup includes two beloved Greater Manchester independent businesses.
Better still, the third is another noteworthy name from the North West.
Glossop Market Hall is scheduled to launch later this year, setting up shop in the historic town hall complex, where the High Peak Borough Council, a retail shopping arcade and various other municipal buildings have stood in various different iterations for nearly well over a century.
With the Derbyshire town set to celebrate the opening of the newly revamped market hall, those behind the new Glossop attraction have now revealed the first three names set to take up residence there.
As you can see, the biggest names already signed on to cook from one of the six kitchens is a Manchester favourite food hall in its own right: Hello Oriental.
The Pan-Asian paradise not only has a subterranean space below Circle Square, but also at The Trafford Centre, as well as a dessert spin-off in Freight Island.
Indie trader number two comes in the form of B&V Trading, who are based at Stanley Square in Sale and specialise in eco-friendly, UK-made treats, toys and essentials for four-legged friends.
After proving a hit with the locals, their small stall at nearby Altrincham Market has grown to see them open up not just a second site in the leafy Cheshire suburbs of Knutsford back in 2022, but now boast a third location in neighbouring Macclesfield.
Speaking of Macc, local gin and whisky makers, Forest Distillery – based up at the famous Cat and Fiddle Inn pub towards the Peaks – they round out the first wave of regional businesses set to pop up in Glossop Market Hall (GMH) when it finally arrives this winter.
And once again, as the update on social media reads: “This is just the beginning”.
Natives, day-trippers and tourists from all over are bound to visit this place when it opens sometime in November (exact date still TBC), and with space not only for a dedicated bar, dining space and a coffee shop, but a total of 17 retail spaces, we can’t wait to see what comes next.
GMH becomes just the latest among a growing trend of food and drink halls popping up all over our part of the country, with virtually every Greater Manchester borough now boasting at least one of their own – or, in the city centre’s case, what feels like a dozen now.
Exhibit number… not sure, we’ve lost track at this point.
Ruben Amorim insists he ‘cannot’ quit as Manchester United manager
Danny Jones
Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim has reiterated that he won’t quit his job at the club and that his departure will only come through being sacked.
The struggling head coach has notched the lowest tally of any permanent manager in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, and despite a much-needed win against Sunderland this past weekend – not to mention a much more positive performance overall – there are still growing calls of ‘Amorim Out’.
Amorim has registered just 34 points from the 33 Premier League games he’s been in charge of so far,
Nevertheless, as per quotes from The Guardian over the weekend, the Portuguese head coach assured that he will not be stepping away from the role and would have to be sacked for him to leave Man United.
Speaking to the outlet after the 2-0 home win this past Saturday, Amorim said: “No, that is a decision of the board – I cannot do that. Sometimes I have that feeling, and losing is hard, not to create the momentum.
“It’s so frustrating when you create the momentum, go to the next game, [and] something happens. That feeling sometimes hurts me a lot. Also, the players and especially the staff here. But that is not my decision, and I think it would be really hard to leave if I don’t do everything to follow my career here.”
The 40-year-old still has the support of many supporters, but it’s fair to say that many neutrals and even die-hards who would like to believe they have put their faith in this rebuild and the INEOS project up to now are growingly increasingly impatient and doubtful, with plenty of vocal detractors already.
Amorim continued, “It’s a dream to be here and I want to continue here, and I want to fight for this; but the problem is now what makes me suffer is to lose games, not to lose my job.”
He also added the caveat that, unlike those who were unfortunately laid off during the two rounds of redundancies over the past 12 months alone, “you fear [losing] your job when you have to pay the bills, and I don’t have that feeling.”
It’s also worth noting that this is by no means the first time he’s fielded questions of the matter of resignation, having previously worried fans with divisive comments about sometimes ‘hating’ his players and flitting between wanting to either quit or echo Fergie and stay at Old Trafford for decades.
"Sometimes I want to quit, sometimes I want to be here for 20 years."
Rúben Amorim defended his emotional response after Manchester United’s defeat to Grimsby Town but admitted he wants to improve how he reacts 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/nXuN0Ztoee
Despite the United administration assuring that he has their backing, every game feels like it could be make or break for Amorim at the moment.
Although he does have the respite of the October international break coming up, the first game back is against the reigning champions Liverpool away at Anfield – a team he is yet to beat.
In fact, you could also argue that this may only serve as disruption to any kind of momentum they may have generated with the victory over the Black Cats; only time will tell.
You can see his most recent post-match press conference in full down below.
Ok, Man United fans: Amorim won’t quit, but do you think he should be sacked, or does he deserve more time?
Georgina Pellant -
3rd October 2022 
