Awards double for Dean Banks’ Haar Restaurant in St Andrews
Chef Dean Banks has picked up another award for his acclaimed Fife restaurant.
Still on a high after notching up a fourth AA Rosette for Haar St Andrews, he has picked up a prestigious award for Lunun Gin at the Scottish Gin Awards.
Lunun is inspired by the beach where Dean grew up and the spirit is made in Arbroath, so it’s very much a local product – making the Gold Award for Best Distilled Gin even more special.
Dean said: “It’s amazing to get this award, I think it really shows the quality of our gin and everything that goes into it. It has been judged by blind taste testing, by some of the leading drinks experts in Scotland – and that shows it really is all about the product we have worked so hard to create.
“To win shows that we have done what we set out to do – make a sensational Scottish gin inspired by some of the ideas and influences I picked up on my travels, but firmly rooted in my home turf.
“Lunun Gin is a real passion for me, it’s very special and it really sums up the spirit of the Dean Banks Group and what we are about. We are very proud of Scotland and the incredible produce we enjoy here, so helping add to that with our gin means the world.
“Like everything we do, it’s all about quality, using and creating the best of the best - and just like me, it’s made in Arbroath.”
Dean’s Lunun Jamberry also won silver for Liqueur of the Year.
He said: “It was a very nice surprise to win the big award AND a nod for our Jamberry which again is a very personal thing for me. love that our hard work and passion for insisting we deliver the absolute best has been recognised again – thank you.”
The Dean Banks group includes Haar St Andrews, 1925 at The Pompadour, Dulse and Dulse Leith in Edinburgh, bars Dune and Temple Lane in St Andrews and Dundee, and brands Lunun Gin, Mond Vodka, Waagyu Burger, Haar at Home – plus the latest addition, a partnership on Hirundine Whisky.