Super sixer!
Visit Bradford, the tourism department for Bradford Metropolitan District Council, has achieved the unthinkable, bagging a double hat trick after being crowned the winner of the Curry Capital of Britain competition, for six years in a row.
The team continued its winning streak with its bid this year focusing on the theme of celebrating achievements.The restaurants chosen to represent Bradford this year were Akbar’s in Thornbury, Aakash in Cleckheaton, Kipling’s at Greengates and Shimla Spice in Keighley.
This year, Bradford’s bid to win the hotly-contested accolade for a record-breaking sixth consecutive year kicked off with a special Curry Capital Olympics event, followed by a traditional garden party celebrating the Queen’s 90th birthday and a dedicated fire safety campaign in conjunction with the Yorkshire Fire Service.
Councillor Sarah Ferriby, portfolio for Environment, Sport and Culture at City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, said: “To say I’m thrilled is an understatement – I’m absolutely over the moon.
“Each year our bids have to be bigger and better than ever before to retain our crown of Curry Capital of Britain.
“To win the award for a record-breaking six years in a row is testament to the hard work and dedication of our team .
“I’d particularly like to thank the Visit Bradford team along with all of the participating restaurants and other stakeholders who have got involved and backed our bid; without out them this just would not be possible. Also I’d like to extend a massive thank you to everyone who took the time to vote for us in the competition.
Judges praised the team at Visit Bradford for their Curry Capital events, activities and charitable contributions surrounding the competition. Colleen Groves, one of the founders of the Curry Capital Competition said: “‘It is a well-deserved victory. The Bradford team members work so well together to best demonstrate the level of cooperation and community spirit that already exists in the city.
“This is the kind of community cohesion that Peter Groves envisaged when he set up the competition 15 years ago.
Building on what has now become known as the ‘Bradford Blueprint’, each year Visit Bradford’s entry into the Curry Capital of Britain competition works to promote community cohesion through a mutual love of Asian food, while raising much needed funds for charitable causes, such as the Curry Tree Foundation.
Tricia Tillotson, tourism manager at Visit Bradford, said: “Each year the competition gets tougher; the expectation for us to produce an award-winning bid grows with every time we win the title, plus other cities continually up their game and certainly give us a run for our money.
“As well as thanking everyone who has made this unbelievable achievement possible, I’d also like to congratulate all of the other cities taking part in this year’s competition.”
