A restaurant has been named the best in Essex at the “Oscars of the curry industry”.

Indian Ocean, in Theydon Bois, Epping, won Best Regional Restaurant of the Year in Essex at the Asian Restaurant & Takeaway Awards (ARTA) 2019.

Nuruz Zaman, the owner of Indian Ocean, in Coppice Row, said “It’s an incredible honour to be named as the best Restaurant of the year at the Asian Restaurant and Takeaway Awards. Our customers can be proud to walk into the best Indian restaurant in all of Essex!

“We pride ourselves in good quality and authentic food and we hope to maintain these high standards.”

Held at the Park Plaza Hotel Westminster, the awards are in recognition of the UK’s best of South Asian, Thai and Chinese cuisine.

More than 2,400 establishments applied to the awards this year, with finalists selected using a survey of more than 350,000 customers of ChefOnline, an online takeaway service.

Salik Mohammed Munim, founder member and CEO of ARTA, said: “Asian cuisine has embedded itself deep within the beating heart of British culture and brings about so much creativity, flavour, vibrancy and joy to so many.

“There is something truly special about the Asian cuisine industry, which binds communities, regions and an entire nation by the common love of incredible food.”