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The local paper for Banbridge & Down Districts and Newry City and Mourne

Copper Restaurant owner and chef Neil Bradley with presenter and celebrity chef Paul Rankin.
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The Copper Restaurant turns to gold with Food Hero nomination

Wednesday, 13 August 2008

WHAT do top chef Paul Rankin and the Copper Restaurant in Warrenpoint have in common? Answer: They both churn out exemplary melt-in-your-mouth cuisine, made more evident in the fact that the restaurant has recently been selected as one of five finalists in the local Food Hero 2008 competition.The competition is run by UKTV Food - Britain's only television channel dedicated solely to the love of food, which runs shows such as Market Kitchen, People's Cookbook, Rhodes Across India and, of course, Local Food Hero.Owned by chef Neil Bradley and manager Sarah Meaney, the Copper Restaurant is unique in that it aims to promote Northern Ireland produce and receives its naturally reared beef and pork from the nearby Narrow Water Castle Farm; all their fish from one fisherman from the local seaside town; their herbs and vegetables from Lurganconary Organic Farm in Kilkeel; their ice-cream from an award-winning Warrenpoint ice-cream maker and their oysters and mussels are also sourced locally. The duo are also part various organisations such as the Taste of Ulster organisation and the Mourne Initiative which aims to promote local food suppliers in Kilkeel, Newry, etc.Explaining how the nomination came about a shocked Neil explained: "One of our customers nominated us on the UKTV voting website. The website then collects hits and adds all the votes and the five restaurants with the most are put through to the final. “We only found out two weeks ago that we were selected as finalists."The winner of the Northern Ireland crown will secure a place in the grand final with the chance to win £40,000 and claim the Local Food Hero 2008 title. "It's just a case of playing the waiting game now," he concluded.Neil, who worked with Paul Rankin for a year and a half in the prestigious Cayenne Restaurant in Belfast, met up with his old acquaintance last Saturday when the internationally-renowned chef ventured into his restaurant to do a film section for UKTV Food and to visit the restaurant's beef supplier.As part of the sequence of challenges to secure the Local Food Hero for 2008, Neil will also be travelling to England next month to cook for Gary Rhodes but, for a restaurant that's only been standing four years and has already coveted the Northern Ireland Tourist Board Hospitality Award and now a finalist in the Local Food Hero challenge, it's Gary who should be the one impressed!For further information on Local Food Hero 2008 log onto: uktvfood.co.uk.