Halal could win European Street Food Awards twice in a row

A number of Halal-friendly street food vendors will be competing in this year’s European Street Food Awards (ESFA) to make it two in a row next weekend.

After the conclusion of the national street food awards across the continent, winners from 13 countries will gather in Sweden on 28-29 September for a final showdown.

Last weekend, Pabellon Venezuelan Food, who confirmed that their “food is 100% Halal”, won the ‘Best Sandwich’ award for their Beef Arepa at the British Street Food Awards.

Pabellon will now be hoping to emulate last year’s ESFA champion Jah Jyot from Sussex – a Punjabi street food business that’s also entirely Halal.

Despite the winners being unable to defend their title this year due to “personal health and commitments”, they were invited to be part of the regional judges panel.

Commenting on the status of street food in Britain, Jah Jyot’s owner posted: “The level of street food is continuously being pushed to far greater levels than I ever could have imagined before. Ingenious, innovative and inspiring chefs have pushed the boundaries of food pairings and techniques to deliver experiences that any restaurant would find difficult, let alone doing this in all weathers on our UK streets!”

Another street food vendor that will be joining them is fully Halal Marokkanische Spezialität which took the North German title for its “authentic tfaya, cooked in heavy clay tagines”.

Halal Indian Dhaba Street Food, which triumphed for Denmark with its New Delhi cuisine, annouced: “We can’t describe the feelings with words! @dhabakitchen just won the prize for best street food in Denmark in @europeanstreetfood. The magic behind everything is passion and dedication. We’re so proud of our team and lots of love to all.”

While the previous two ESFA finals have taken place in Berlin, the organisers decided to change things up this year with the event being moved to the coastal city of Malmö.

“Sweden was one of the first countries to really get behind the European Street Food Awards,” founder of the awards, Richard Johnson, said.