The top 10 finalists in contention for the Restaurants Association of Ireland title of 'Foodie Town 2015' have been revealed.
The Restaurants Association of Ireland today announced their shortlist, with some of the country's top food destinations included.
In the search for Ireland’s premier food destination, applications from all over the country were assessed and narrowed down by an independent panel of judges, with voting now open to the public to choose their winner.
The top ten ‘Foodie Towns’ of Ireland in 2015 are as follows:
Boyne Valley
Derry
Dungarvan
Howth
Kilkenny
Kinsale
Loop Head Peninsula
Sligo
The Burren
West Cork
Each of the ten finalists will now receive a pre-arranged visit by a pair of independent assessors in the coming weeks. This assessment will be combined with a national public voting campaign where the public can choose their winning foodie destination out of the ten finalists – this can be done through www.foodietowns.ie. Both components will carry equal weight in the overall score.
The winning town/destination will be crowned ‘Foodie Town of Ireland 2015’ in October.
The ‘Foodie Town of Ireland’ award recognises a destination that actively promotes itself through joint promotional activities such as food festivals, gourmet trails or farmers’ markets as well as great dining experiences. The winning Irish destination will have established a local producer/supplier network which is utilised and promoted by local businesses. Plans for future growth and investment into the food and hospitality industry at a local level will also be taken into consideration by judges. Education, training, development and employment will be key components of the ultimate foodie destination.
