A CUMBRIAN business has won big at a prestigious family business awards evening.

The Dalesman Country Inn at Sedbergh joined more than sixty family business finalists from across the region at The North West Family Business Awards.

The awards, held at Liverpool’s iconic Titanic Hotel, celebrated family businesses of all sizes and sectors covering Cheshire, Cumbria, Lancashire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside.

A capacity crowd of more than 400 gathered on the night to see the winners of the region’s best family businesses revealed. Hosting the evening were awards founders Sue Howorth and Dave Clarkson and food writer and presenter Nigel Barden. 

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The Dalesman Inn was announced as the overall winners of the Food and Drink Establishments category on the night.

The Westmorland Gazette:

Mike Garnett, owner of The Dalesman said: “This is the first award we’ve entered since I took over the pub from my parents twenty-four years ago. I was surprised and delighted to be a finalist, let alone win. Carol, our General Manager cried when our name was read out and my mum was very emotional.

“Winning the award was a really proud moment for me and for the whole team. I’m so grateful to have such hard-working and committed people around us. I would have loved everyone to be there on the night to celebrate but we had to keep the pub open.”

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The Dalesman is a 16th-century coaching inn that has been run by two generations of the same family for over thirty-five years. While the pub still plays a central role in village and community life, its high-quality food and drink offering now attracts foodie visitors to the picturesque town.

After being shortlisted, judges visited The Dalesman for a tour and sampled some of the dishes on the menu, including the locally reared Sedbergh Galloway steak with smoked brisket bonbon and the homemade Irish coffee crème brulee.