Food Award Winners

06 Jan 2016

A four year journey of producing the most delectable authentic yet contemporary Italian dishes for even the most discerning taste palate coupled with an attentive true Italian dining experience saw independent family run Sapori’s of Leicestershire walk away with two awards at the National Food Awards held at the Mercure Manchester Piccadilly on Sunday 8th Of November, hosted by Creative Oceanic.

Awarded with Best Italian in England, and Best Italian in Midlands, the two awards brings national recognition to this hidden gem nestled in Anstey Leicestershire, a stone throw away from the beautiful Bradgate Park

“We were happy to have been shortlisted for Best Italian in Midlands, but to win both Best Italian in Midlands and Best Italian in England has just been amazing, unbelievable, it feels so great to have been recognised at a National level, and all our hard work and passion appreciated by the public and industry” – Luigi Riccardi – Manager and Co-Founder

“Our dream was to open a successful Italian restaurant to give the people of Leicester a real true flavour of Italy, myself, Luigi and Cristina have worked tirelessly and extremely passionately for the last four years to arrive at where we are today, we believe our success is down to our passion and commitment to offer the best Italian Fine dining experience, and we believe in providing the best customer service to our clients” – Andrea Scarpati – Head Chef and Co-Founder “We would like to thank all of our customers who have supported us since we opened and to Creative Oceanic for this wonderful opportunity to be recognised on a national platform” Cristina Riccardi – Co-founder.

Sapori’s was established in 2011 by Andrea Scarparti, wife Cristina Riccardi and her brother Luigi Riccardi, with a dream and vision to bring a true authentic Italian fine dining experience to the Midlands, which they have succeeded at with great flair.

A menu steered and created by head chef Andrea and customers tended to under the watchful eye of managing partner Luigi, where no request is too much trouble, has seen to the success of this Italian. 

Everything on the menu is made fresh on site from the homemade fresh pasta to the breads and taste bud tickling dessert menu, which includes an impressive list of homemade gelato made in the famous Sapori kitchen. The menu is changed seasonally and incorporates fresh local produce, with a weekly specials menu featuring fresh fish to the finest meats and indulging desserts.

A bar area is also available for informal drinks and light bites, and is available for private hire for special celebrations. The restaurant is also open at lunch time to cater for business lunches.

A sense of family traditions and warmth lies at the heart of the Sapori experience. Within the four years the establishment has seen a major refurbishment which was carried out in January 2015.

The awards ceremony was a glitzy black tie event hosted by beauty queen and Director of Miss High Street Models, Rachelle Perez and the evening saw over 200 entries competing for the 25 awards recognising the nation’s finest contributors to the food sector.

The event bought together some of the most prominent and distinguished names in the English food industry, recognising their hard work and commitment to always provide their customers with the best products and service.

“We are humbled and honoured with the support from the public who voted in their thousands to ensure the best in the industry were recognised. We hope the public and the nominees continue to support this hard working and thriving industry which will ensure the awards grow year on year. We would like to congratulate all the winners and the finalists who truly had tough competition this year. ” commented Irfan Younis of event organisers Creative Oceanic.

The Oceanic group founded by Irfan Younis plays host to 25 highly recognised award ceremonies highlighting talents in all business sectors throughout the year.