A COMPETITION which seeks the most eye-catching dish in the North has been launched.

Restaurants, pubs and eateries throughout the North West are being encouraged to enter images of their most visually impressive dishes of fine or casual dining to win the 2018 Food Porn Award.

Professional food photographers from STM Photography will select 30 dishes per category to move through to an online public vote.

The 12 finalist dishes will then be reviewed by a panel of judges, including food developers, bloggers and journalists, to pick the final winner for each category.

Last year was the first that the competition was open to entries from Cumbria and the overall winner in the North West region was The Gilpin Hotel and Lake House, Windermere, for the photo of its Laksa with Barbary Duck dish (pictured).

This year's winners will be announced at the Northern Restaurant and Bar Show in March 2018.

Phil Marshall, STM managing director and curator of the awards, said: “The past two years of the awards have been hugely successful and showcased the wide range of talent in the North West, Cumbria and Yorkshire.

"This year we are delighted to open up the competition to the whole of the North and see what the North East can bring to the table. After last year’s successful expansion, we had to ensure 2018 was even bigger and better."

Eateries can submit their images of great-looking food online via FoodPornAwards.co.uk until October 18.

For more information on the awards and how to enter, visit www.foodpornawards.co.uk or email christy@refreshpr.co.uk.