Guild of Food Writers Awards 2026 Finalists Announced

The Guild of Food Writers has announced the shortlist for its annual Awards, the most prestigious in food writing and broadcasting. The winners will be announced at a ceremony on Wednesday 3 June 2026 at the Royal Institution, 21 Albemarle Street, London W1S 4BS.

The shortlist highlights emerging talents such as Anna Ansari, Dan O’Regan, and Jenny Lau as well as some of the industry’s best-known food writers and broadcasters, including Jimi Famurewa, Dan Saladino and Grace Dent.

2026 Awards Shortlists

Cookery Book Award

• Service: One Day in a Restaurant, Over 150 Recipes to Cook at Home by Anna Hedworth

• Plant Academy: The Cookbook by Lauren Lovatt

• Flavour Heroes: 15 Modern Pantry Ingredients to Amplify your Cooking by Gurdeep Loyal

Cookery Writer Award

• Nick Bramham for work published in Vittles

• Emily Gussin for work published in delicious. magazine

• Tom Hunt for work published in The Guardian

Debut Book Award

• Silk Roads: A Flavour Odyssey with Recipes from Baku to Beijing by Anna Ansari

• An A-Z of Chinese Food (Recipes Not Included) by Jenny Lau

• Caribe: A Caribbean Cookbook with History by Keshia Sakarah

Drinks Writer Award

• The Cynic’s Guide to Wine by Sunny Hodge

• Join The Community Cru; 100 Years of the Martini Glass; The Idle Cocktail Hour by Alice Lascelles

• The Curious Bartender’s Agave Safari: Discovering and Appreciating Mexico’s Tequilas, Mezcals & More by Tristan Stephenson

Food Book Award

• Picky: from fussy child to professional gourmet by Jimi Famurewa

• All Consuming: Why We Eat The Way We Eat Now by Ruby Tandoh

• The Heart-Shaped Tin: Love, Loss and Kitchen Objects by Bee Wilson

Food Magazine or Supplement Award

• Olive

• Pellicle

• Vittles

Food Podcast or Broadcast Award

• Mr Lyan’s Taste Trips presented by Ryan Chetiyawardana, produced by Jonny Dixon

• Hebridean Baker: Nordic Islands written and presented by Coinneach MacLeod, produced by Faye MacLean and Julie McCrone

• The Food Programme: Why Is Africa Feeding Us? produced and presented by Dan Saladino

Food Writer Award

• Tim Anderson for work published in Pit, Vittles, and Waitrose Food

• Anna Ansari for work published in Filler Zine, Pit and Tastebound

• Christy Spring for work published in Foodism

International or Regional Cookery Book Award

• Indian Kitchens: Treasured Family Recipes From Across the Land by Roopa Gulati

• Boustany: a celebration of vegetables from my Palestine by Sami Tamimi

• Balli Balli: Quick Korean Recipes for Everyday by Da-Hae West

Investigative Food Writer Award

• The Accidental Seed Heroes: Growing a delicious food future for all of us by Adam Alexander

• Food Fight: From Plunder and Profit to People and Planet by Stuart Gillespie

• Joanna Taylor for work published in Foodism, The Observer Food Monthly and The Telegraph

Newcomer Award

• Food is Home by Tiffany Wu Edwards

• The Steak Dinner by Stanley Morell

• The Barstool That Remembered Me by Ankita Neotia

Restaurant Writer Award

• Grace Dent for her work in The Guardian Feast

• Tim Hayward for work published in FT Weekend Magazine

• Chitra Ramaswamy for work published in The Times Scotland and The Observer

Self-Published Online Food Writer Award

• Mark Diacono for work published on Substack: Abundance

• Hugo Harrison for work published on Substack: Salt and the Earth

• Dan O’Regan for work published on Substack: Notes on a Napkin

Single Topic Cookery Book Award

• The Christmas Companion by Skye McAlpine

• Home Shores: 100 simple fish recipes to cook at home by Emily Scott

• Mushroom: 80 Recipes Celebrating Remarkable Mushrooms by Claire Thomson

Specialist Cookery Book Award

• Adventures in Fermentation by Dr Johnny Drain

• Richard Hart Bread: Intuitive Sourdough Baking by Richard Hart & Laurie Woolever with Henrietta Lovell

• Beyond Baking: Plant-based Baking for a New Era by Philip Khoury

For more information:

The Guild of Food Writers

Email: admin@gfw.co.uk | Website: www.gfw.co.uk

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