Yay!

It’s time. The year has officially started – and applications are open. Let the 2023 British Street Food Awards begin! Traders apply here. As is tradition, we would like to announce the details of our two southern heats first. Blue Collar Corner in Reading, on the weekend of April 15-16, and Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth, on the weekend of May 6-8, where you will be able to taste the finest street food traders in the South of England – and vote for your winners. They will all then join our judges’ champions at the grand final of the 2023 British Street Food Awards in London on August 18-20 and, if they win big there, at the grand final of the 2023 European Street Food Awards in Germany.

We have previous with Blue Collar – and Gunwharf Quays. After we appeared on Saturday Kitchen with food from five of our finalists, we could have sold out the grand final of the 2020 Awards, hosted by Blue Collar, 10 times over. Any other year we would have squeezed everyone in – a bit of ‘budge up please’, and some ‘shift along there madam’. But not in a time of virus. We ran a safe – and sound – event, with clickers on the door monitoring crowd numbers, and more bottles of hand sanitiser than you could shake a stick at (although ‘shaking a stick’ was actually only allowed in Tier One). This year, for the South Eastern heats of the 2023 British Street Food Awards, we’re at the gorgeous Blue Collar Corner – and life will be SO much easier…

When they come to write the history of the British Street Food Awards, Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth will have its own chapter. Oh, we do like to be beside the seaside – especially when it’s the historic coronation weekend! We couldn’t wait to return to the sun-drenched plaza of the South Coast’s biggest outlet shopping destination – our much beloved Gunwharf – for the Southern heats of the 2023 British Street Food Awards. Finalists will be asked to create a royal-inspired dish for their menus. But will it be enough to win your vote? Next up we’ll be announcing details of the the Northern heats, plus the Scottish Street Food Awards and the Welsh Street Food Awards – before revealing our AMAZING location for the grand finals in August. Stay tuned!