Wednesday 6 May 2015

East Midlands family butcher takes England’s best sirloin steak crown

Family butcher Owen Taylor & Sons Ltd has been named as the producer of the best sirloin steak in England. 
The company, based at Leabrooks near Alfreton, triumphed at the EBLEX Quality Standard Mark Excellence Awards 2015. 
Richard Taylor, managing director at Owen Taylor & Sons Ltd, said: “This is a magnificent moment for us and our customers. We know we produce some of the finest steaks around, which come from quality animals from assured farms. Our sirloin steaks are well-matured and deliver fantastic flavour – and they are now officially the best in the country! 
“Not only is this great news for Owen Taylor & Sons Ltd, it is also great news for our customers too. Our customers who buy from our shop know they are getting the best sirloin steak in England, and our catering customers, such as restaurants and hotels, can be confident that they are serving their customers with a top steak.” 
The awards are the latest in a long line of accolades presented to Owen Taylor & Sons Ltd, based at Leabrooks, near Alfreton. The company, butchers since 1922, supplies retail and catering customers across the East Midlands, along with many of the region’s top restaurants and hotels, including Harts Restaurant, the Michelin-starred Restaurant Sat Bains and the award-winning Morley Hayes hotel and restaurant in Derbyshire. 
The vast majority of its beef, pork and lamb is sourced from farms in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire, with additional livestock sourced from neighbouring areas such as Staffordshire, South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Rutland to satisfy customer demand.  
The company has a number of titles to its name, but being hailed as the producer of the best sirloin steak in England is a huge accolade, said Richard Taylor, the grandson of the founder of the business. 
“These awards are a fantastic recognition of the hard work and dedication that goes into producing our meat; from the farmers to our on-site team of butchers and bakers. We constantly strive to create the very best products for all our customers to enjoy and are delighted to be able to prove that this is the case – not just locally but nationwide too,” he added. 
The ‘Larder Trim Sirloin Steak’ from Owen Taylor & Sons was one of nine shortlisted products in the ‘Best Sirloin Steak’ competition, picked after two tense rounds of judging. Three finalists from each of the competition’s three categories – Independent Butcher, Multiple Retailer and Foodservice Operator – were then invited to a special awards ceremony in London when the category winners – and the Overall Winner were unveiled. 
After winning the ‘Independent Butcher Category’, Owen Taylor & Sons Ltd went on to be crowned ‘Overall Champion’ and purveyor of England’s Best Sirloin Steak. 
Owen Taylor & Sons Ltd also claimed the category winner title in the ‘Added Value Steaks’ section of the ‘England’s Best Innovative Steak’ competition with a ‘Denver Fire Steak’. Furthermore, their ‘12-Inch Steak and Stilton Pie’ was highly commended in the foodservice category of ‘England’s Best Steak Pie’. 
Competition organiser and foodservice project manager for EBLEX, Hugh Judd, said: “Often described as the ‘king of steaks’ the sirloin is a prime cut that has wonderful taste and texture. But there is a lot riding on both the butchery techniques and quality of the animal to produce the very best examples. Owen Taylor & Sons Ltd has the ideal processes in place and go to extraordinary lengths to get their sirloin steaks right each time. That is why they were chosen as Champions.”
For more details visit www.owentaylor.co.uk
Press release issued by Nottingham PR agency Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk