A popular Biggleswade curry house has been voted as one of the best in the UK at the annual Curry Life Awards.
Biggles Lounge in Shortmead Street was among six winners in the Best Customers Choice category at the ceremony in Central London.
Manager Mohammed Abul Hasnat took to the stage in front of 700 people at the Royal Lancaster Hotel to collect the award from event host, journalist and Channel 4 newsreader Jon Snow.
Mohammed praised his staff after winning the award, saying: “The food is excellent, that is why people are coming.
“The service is excellent and all of my colleagues are very friendly.”
The family-owned restaurant – which opened in 2014 – is run by Siddiqur Rahman, who was delighted to see it ranked as one of the best in the country.
“It’s great honour to be recognised,” he said.
“I would like to thank my team for their hard work and our customers who’ve inspired us to keep improving and experimenting.”
The eatery is a favourite among Biggleswade residents, earning a four-and-a-half star rating on TripAdvisor – with a Mexican slow-cooked lamb among its most popular dishes.
This year’s triumph at the Curry Life Awards is not the first for Biggles Lounge, with head chef Nazim Uddin voted as one of the UK’s best curry chefs at the 2017 gala.
Among the awards this year was a survey to find the king of the curries.
Lovers of spice will be disappointed to hear that korma was named as the winner with a quarter of the votes, followed by jalfrezi and tikka masala in second and third.
The announcement of korma’s victory was made by Lord Karan Bilimoria, founder of Indian beer Cobra. He was shocked by its win, saying: “The survey findings really are fascinating.
“Not many people would have thought korma was more popular than dishes such as tikka masala and balti.
“Curry remains one of the country’s favourite takeaway foods and now we know that korma is king.”
Other guests at the event included MPs Rushanara Ali, Wes Streeting, Rupa Haq and Paul Scully.
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