As a finale to the first ever London Restaurant Festival we headed east for our awards – and what a wonderful evening it turned out to be. Some 250 of the most influential chefs, critics and restaurateurs in the industry turned out.
Our host for the evening was the BBC’s Nigel Barden who provided both wit and warmth. Fay Maschler, the distinguished Evening Standard restaurant critic and festival Chair, opened proceedings explaining that the awards were devised to honour the fundamentals of restaurant-going as she saw it. So there was no Best French, Best Italian and so forth but categories that included Bravery, Passion, Ceremony and Fun.
Thanks to our awards presenters Giles Coren, Tom Parker-Bowles, Tracey MacLeod and Nick Jones.
Also thanks to GH Mumm champagne who were the official champagne of the London Restaurant Festival and Ketel One vodka who did cocktails.
You can see all the award winners if you click on the article in today’s London Evening Standard.
Fay was presented with a special award, by GH Mumm, for her outstanding contribution to the industry before I trundled up to give thanks to all of those who have helped the festival be such a tremendous success in year one.
The whole thing lasted no more than 40 minutes which Fay and I were particularly pleased about as there are few things we find more tiresome than lengthy awards ceremonies.
Pizza East Opening and After Party
The awards were held in a rather modish covered, cobbled courtyard that separates Shoreditch House from Pizza East, the latest restaurant from Nick Jones, the founder of Soho House, and his business partner Richard Caring.
Nick, who is an old friend of Fay and myself, very kindly offered to open up Pizza East to 160 of our guests for dinner. Given that the place does not open to the public until Friday this was extremely generous of him – and also rather brave given that the room was full of critics, chefs and restaurateurs.
Pizza East, housed in a 5000 sq ft former tea warehouse, straddles the worlds of the City and the Shoreditch funksters and its canny formula of rough-hewn hipness will appeal to both.
We feasted on the most delicious pizza and Francesco Mazzei, whose restaurant L’Anima won an award and who was brought up in Calabria told me he thought the pizza superb and he knows what he’s talking about.
Plate after plate of calamari, lasagne, sea bass and a divine cauliflower carbonara came to the table washed down with tumblers of wine – it’s all about tumblers of wine these days. Thanks so much Nick and good luck when you open on Friday.
All in all a wonderful way to round off the first London Restaurant Festival. However, this does not mean that this website will be going quiet. Oh no.
I’ll keep everyone updated as we start to make plans for the London Restaurant Festival 2010. All the team have achieved an extraordinary amount in year one with very little time or money and we intend to build on that platform.
We’ve learned an enormous amount. There’ll be changes, improvements and some new events so keep checking in.
Thanks everyone for your support and all feedback is vital to us so speak up.
The idea for the Gourmet Odyssey was hatched a few years ago when Fay organised a Gourmet Gallop for winners of an Evening Standard competition. We took ten people to four different restaurants and they had a course in each. It was a triumph.
The successful bidder had paid £23,000 for the one-off opportunity with money going to 
