Two Wrexham venues have been shortlisted for a prestigious Asian Restaurant Award for 2026.
The 10th International Asian Restaurant Awards organised by the Asian Catering Federation will return to Manchester on Monday, September 7 with nearly 160 restaurants, groups and takeaways shortlisted for an award.
The winners will be announced at a glittering award ceremony held at The Manchester Deansgate Hotel that night.
The event will be hosted by broadcast journalist and BBC TV News anchor Samantha Simmonds, and Anisa Khan, owner of Bombay Pizza and last year’s finalist in the BBC’s flagship programme The Apprentice.
The awards recognise outstanding culinary excellence, innovation, endeavour, and sumptuous creativity, and are one of the most sought after awards in the hospitality industry.
Among the finalists this time around are Ijazz and Maahi's, which are both located in the Wrexham area.
Based on Egerton Street in Wrexham, IJazz is an Indian restaurant that has won countless awards for its delicious food over the years.
It was crowned North Wales Restaurant of the year at the National Curry Awards 2024.
Maahi's is an Indian/Bangladeshi restaurant situated on the A483 Ruabon bypass.
It was named among the 'Top 100 Curry Restaurants' in the UK back in May.
Both have been shortlisted for a prize in the Wales categories of the final alongside; Benllech Tandoori Restaurant (Brynteg, Anglesey), Sopna Tandoori, and SeaView Indian Restaurant - Caernarfon (Gwynedd), Empire Indian Restaurant, and Purple Poppadom - Cardiff, 1988 Indian Restaurant - Sully, Penarth and Rasoi Waterfront - Swansea.
The shortlist, which covers the entire range of Asian cuisines including: Bangladeshi, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Nepalese, Korean, Malaysian, Pan-Asian, Indonesian, Thai, Turkish, Vietnamese and Middle-Eastern cuisine) is compiled by popular vote, with the final winners chosen by the Federation’s esteemed panel of judges.
The most prominent awards include Business Person of the Year, the National Award for Asian Restaurant of the Year in England and in Wales, Restaurant Group of the Year, King of Curry, National Buffet Restaurant of the Year and Best Regional Newcomer.
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Also among this year’s nominations are: 5 city centre restaurants in Birmingham, 5 in Cambridge, 13 from host city of Manchester plus 17 from Greater Manchester, 4 from Sunderland, 8 from Northern Ireland, single entries from Dubai, Gibraltar, Istanbul, Madrid, and Edinburgh; 4 from Preston and 10 from London including Colonel Saab in Holborn, Benares and Madhu’s in Mayfair, Kahani in Sloane Square, and Darjeeling Express in Soho - renowned for its all-female kitchen team.
Chair of the Asian Catering Federation, Yawar Khan said: “I am delighted to announce this year’s shortlist at a time when we welcome Andy Burnham to No.10. Manchester is a city that welcomes international cuisine and is host to some of the very best Asian restaurants and takeaways in the UK."
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