Nigel Haworth honoured with Special Award at Craft Guild of Chefs Awards

Nigel Haworth, chef-patron of the Michelin-starred hotel and restaurant Northcote in Langho, Lancashire has been honoured with the Special Award at the Craft Guild of Chefs Awards.

The glittering, black-tie event was held at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge hotel in London last night.

Together with 2016 Hotelier of the Year Craig Bancroft, who has co-owned the hotel with Haworth for nearly 30 years, Haworth transformed the hotel and won it a Michelin star in 1995, which it has retained since.

Together Haworth and Bancroft also run the catering contract at Blackburn Rovers Football Club and pub company Ribble Valley Inns, and opened a café bar at Blackburn Cathedral known as Café Northcote last summer

They also orchestrate the yearly gastronomic event Obsession 17 at the hotel, which this year raised £32,000 for industry benevolent charity Hospitality Action.

Haworth said: "It's an amazing industry that we're part of. It's an amazing privilege to have worked in it. I'm very, very proud to be given this award. For everybody that's coming into the industry: it's a very, very rewarding job, it's an amazing career and I hope that we can keep encouraging young people to keep coming in, developing and enjoying the job."

Other winners included 2017 Acorn Award winner Gordon Stott of the Sun Inn, who won the Pub Chef award; and Cpl Ian Mark from the Royal Air Force who scooped the Armed Services Chef Award just days after having been announced the winner of this year's Great British Bake-Off: Crème de la Crème.

Vineet Bhatia London was awarded New Restaurant of the Year after having relaunched late last year, and the Clink Charity and Restaurants was given the Innovation Award.

The awards in full
Apprentice Chef Award (sponsored by Compass Group UK & Ireland)
Tom Hamblet, South Lodge hotel

Armed Services Chef Award (sponsored by Purple Foodservice Solutions)
Cpl Ian Mark, Royal Air Force

Banqueting and Event Chef Award (sponsored by Pidy UK)
Karen Poynter, Chester Boyd

Chef Lecturer Award (sponsored by Hotelympia 2018)
Matthew Shropshall, University College Birmingham College of Food

Competition Chef Award (sponsored by Nestlé Professional)
Simon Webb, Culinary Olympics

Contract Catering Chef Award (sponsored by Kerry)
Glynn Lawrence, Sodexo Prestige

Development Chef Award (sponsored by Essential Cuisine)
Glenn Evans, Las Iguanas

Ethnic Chef Award (sponsored by Nayati UK)
Tong Chee Hwee, Hakkasan Group

Innovation Award (sponsored by Major International)
The Clink Charity and Restaurants

New Restaurant of the Year Award (sponsored by Jelf Insurance)
Vineet Bhatia London

Pastry Chef Award (sponsored by Carpigiani UK)
Emmanuel Bonneau, Hilton Worldwide

People's Choice Award (sponsored by Nisbets)
Harry Lomas, the Grove, Watford

Pub Chef Award (sponsored by Bidfood)
Gordon Stott, the Sun Inn

Public Sector Chef Award (sponsored by Premier Foods)
Jamie Gibbs, ESS Government Services, Compass Group

Restaurant Chef Award (sponsored by Hoshizaki UK)
Daniel Smith, the Ingham Swan

Young Chef Award (sponsored by British Premium Meats)
Ben Garnett-Sinclair, Lusso

Special Award (sponsored by Sodexo UK & Ireland)
Nigel Haworth, Northcote Manor

Honorary Award
Phil Hooper

Craft Guild of Chefs reveals 2017 Kitchen and Pastry Graduate Awards semi-finalists >>

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