Ahead of National Curry Week in the UK (5-11 October) MPs are being urged to revive the Parliamentary Tiffin Cup.
The Tiffin Cup was an annual competition where MPs (advised by their constituents) nominated the Best South Asian Restaurant in their area.
One restaurant from every region was then shortlisted and invited to participate in the Grand Final cook-off event held in the House of Commons in London, and judged by MPs and guest celebrities, with the proceeds going to charity.
The Tiffin Cup was last won in 2019 by Kuti’s Restaurant in Southampton, where former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says he worked shifts “just for fun” as a student.
The competition was created by a group of MPs with Keith Vaz as its chairman to celebrate quality South Asian food. The trophy was usually presented by the Speaker of the House of Commons.
Demands for its return are led by George Shaw, editor of the respected Good Curry Guide.
He told this site “These are challenging times for the hospitality sector, with both restaurants and customers being hard hit by rising costs. The Tiffin Cup will help to promote what is a vital part of our economy.
“Most curry houses are small independent businesses – not a ubiquitous chain which sucks cash away from the local area, funnelling profits to a corporate headquarters many miles away, or to an offshore bank account.
“Curry is a firmly established part of British history and culture.
“Queen Elizabeth I granted the first charter in 1600 allowing London merchants to trade with the “East Indies”, hoping to break the Dutch monopoly on the spice trade.”
The earliest surviving curry recipe in English was published in 1747.
The first Indian restaurant in London, the Hindoostane Coffee House, was opened in 1810 by Sake Dean Mahomed, a former captain in the British East India Company.
He went on to become ‘personal shampooing surgeon’ to George IV and William IV.
British appetites for spice became entrenched during the British colonial era in India, from 1600 to 1947.
Queen Victoria, ‘Empress of India’ was introduced to Indian cuisine by her ‘Munshi’, Abdul Karim.
Thereafter she ate curry every day, with great relish and in considerable quantities, until the end of her life, 25 years later.
The ritual of enjoying a refreshing lager with Indian food was introduced by Prince Axel of Denmark.
The Prince attended the British Empire Exhibition in 1924.
During his visit he discovered the cuisine of Veeraswamy (London’s first high end Indian restaurant and still in existence), which ran a “pop-up” at the Exhibition.
The Prince brought a barrel of Carlsberg with him and continued to send one each Christmas.
Shaw is urging restaurant curry fans to write to their MPs asking them to reestablish the Tiffin Cup competition as an annual fixture in Parliament, with their own nominations.
Spice lovers can find the email address of their MP via https://www.mysociety.org/wehelpyou/who-is-your-mp
