EXTRA PORTIONS FOR WINNERS OF

BEST PROVISION FOR VEGGIES AT A VISITOR ATTRACTION

Vegetarian Society Awards 2007

 

The Vegetarian Society is delighted to announce that there are joint winners in the first Best Provision for Veggies at a Visitor Attraction award - one of which is from Cumbria. The joint winners of this new award are The Monkey Sanctuary Trust, Looe, Cornwall and the Quaker Tapestry Exhibition Centre & Tearooms, Kendal, Cumbria.

The award set out to find out which visitor attraction, museum, theme park, art gallery or country-house, went out of its way to cater for veggies giving them a great veggie food experience. Often vegetarian consumers visit an attraction’s restaurant/café hoping against hope that there will be more than a curly cheese sandwich or chips. This award is all about celebrating those venues which really understand how to cater for all their customers.

The winners were chosen from the following shortlist compiled after the Society’s members and the general public voted:

Bridget Guest, the General Manager of the Centre in Kendal said: "We were delighted to hear that we had been nominated for this award, and to discover that we were joint winners just made our year! We are very proud of our Tearooms and pleased to have received this national recognition of the high standards achieved by our small staff team. As well as the exhibition visitors from all over the world, we have a loyal, local customer base - we have recently given a special presentation to two of our customers to celebrate the fact that they have visited us every Friday morning for scones and coffee since we opened five years ago!"

Su Taylor, spokesperson for The Vegetarian Society said: “Judges looked at a variety of criteria from the general ambience, taste and value for money, through to more specific vegetarian issues such as accurate information, range of foods, vegan choices and whether the staff were helpful and informative. Congratulations to the winners – it’s great to find that there are visitor attractions in the UK setting high and delicious standards for vegetarian provision.”

The Vegetarian Society’s Awards are highly regarded in the food and drinks industry. They promote best practice among caterers, manufacturers and retailers, and highlight the importance of integrity in the vegetarian market place.

EDITORS NOTES

• For further information/interviews please contact Su Taylor in the Press Office on 0161 925 2000 or email press@vegsoc.org Outside office hours The Vegetarian Society Press Office can be contacted on 07973 108 165/ 7. Alternatively visit the website for lots more information at www.vegsoc.org

• For further information on The Quaker Tapestry Exhibition Centre & Tearooms please contact Bridget Guest, General Manager on 01539 722975.

• Annette Pinner, Chief Executive of The Vegetarian Society will be presenting the award to the Quaker Tapestry Exhibition Centre and Tearooms, at the tearooms on November 1 at 10.30am.

• The Vegetarian Society defines a vegetarian as a person who eats no meat, poultry, game, fish, shellfish or crustacea. Vegetarians also avoid the by-products of slaughter such as gelatine or animal rennet in cheese. The Society only approves products containing eggs when they are free-range.