Haverhill restaurant crowned the best in Suffolk

The New Maharajah, in Haverhill, has been named the Suffolk Restaurant of the Year at the National Curry Awards.

The newly-created awards took place on Monday night and were presented during a ceremony at the House of Lords.

Sayful Alam Khan, who has owned the High Street restaurant since 2002, was there to collect the award along with director Dilwar Miha.

Mr Khan said: “It’s a proud moment for myself that I got the award and to get it at the House of Lords too.”

The awards were presented in three categories recognising outstanding chefs and successful restaurants and food businesses across the UK.

Nominations for the categories of Best Chef, Best Takeaway and Best Restaurant came in from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

The Asian catering industry is worth an estimated £5 billion to the UK economy, but in recent years has witnessed a worrying decline that has been largely attributed to a shortage of skilled workers and lack of investment in training.

The NCA was launched to address these concerns and aims to positively promote the industry by highlighting the sector’s success stories and its wider contribution to UK culture.

Winners at the National Curry Awards 2019 range from long-established family businesses to more recently launched ventures which, along with the winning chefs, exemplify what can be achieved through dedication to first-class customer service and the creation of fantastic cuisine.