Oliver Awards toasts cream of the crop

Oliver Awards, at Elland Road Pavilion, Leeds. All the winners take a bow. Picture by Simon Hulme

The star-studded ceremony saw self-trained Michelin Star chef Tommy Banks scoop our coveted Outstanding Achievement Award, while more than a dozen other trophies were handed out to deserving restaurateurs, chefs and others who work in the local dining industry.

The awards are based on the weekly restaurant reviews, which are published every Thursday inside the YEP’s The Guide.

The full list of winners will be revealed on Thursday this week in a special pullout supplement.

Mr Banks was awarded a Michelin Star aged just 24 after he took over the reins in the kitchen at The Black Swan, Oldstead, near York and on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors National Park. The pub was bought by his family in order to save it from closure and Tommy began his career by helping out in the kitchen.

The restaurant has won wide renown, not least because most of the ingredients are grown in site in their own gardens. It also has four AA Rosettes and Tommy has appeared on the BBC’s Great British Menu.

YEP editor Hannah Thaxter, who delivered the opening address on the night, said: “It was a fantastic night and we are so proud to be able to shine a light on the people who work so hard behind the scenes in an industry which gives to much to our city and our region.

“We look forward to revealing the full list of winners to our readers on Thursday this week.

“I think it’s great we can give them the credit they deserve and we were honoured by the presence of so many national figures from the food industry.”

Chief among those was Radio 2 presenter, chef and former wine merchant Nigel Barden, who compered the ceremony for the first time.

Other guests included consultant chef Stephanie Moon and esteemed food writer Elaine Lemm, who writes for The Yorkshire Post.

There were also some surprises on the night itself, with some of our top awards going to first-time recipients.

Tweets and facebook posts were made throughout the night.

The awards are kindly sponsored by Deliveroo, Slingsby Gin, Costco, Chefs Direct, Suma Foods and Yorkshire Food & Drink, representatives of which helped present last night’s awards.