A total of 17 Best of Kerry award winners have been announced at an event at the Dúchas Comhaltas Ceoltoirí Centre in the Kerry Sports Academy in Tralee.
It is the first year of the awards which were organised by Radio Kerry and sponsored by Lee Strand.
The Best of Kerry was launched in late August, promoted via Radio Kerry’s radio and digital platforms and shared by businesses and communities countywide. Radio listeners and social media followers were initially invited to nominate their best of Kerry in 17 categories, which ranged from best beach to best takeaway.
In that phase over 40,000 nominations were received and they were then shortlisted to the top five in each category with two categories showing a tie for fifth place. The shortlist was published and, once again, it was opened to a public to cast their votes in the 17 categories with almost 150,000 votes registered over a two-week period.
Fiona Stack, General Manager, Radio Kerry, said: “We were conscious that there was a lot of negativity around – bad news that was unavoidable about the economy, utility bills, the Ukraine and climate change.
“While all these are realities – we all know that Kerry is a beautiful place with great people, great businesses and great communities. Those stories need to be told too”.
Gearóid Linnane, CEO, Lee Strand said the awards were a tremendous success, recognising the importance of supporting local and celebrating everything that is the best in Kerry.
“What is great about the Best of Kerry Awards is that awards were based on people’s choice and it was fantastic to see customers voting and showing their support. We would like to congratulate all of the winners and everyone who was nominated for an award over the past number of weeks,” he said.
Third party software was used to handle the Best of Kerry nomination and voting processes.
BEST RESTAURANT: Kate Browne’s Bar and Restaurant, Ardfert
BEST PUB: Sean Óg’s Traditional Irish Bar, Tralee
BEST HAIRDRESSER: Emma Quirke Hair, Tralee
BEST COFFEE: Bean in Dingle
BEST SPA: Nádúr Spa at Ballygarry Estate, Tralee
BEST BUTCHER: Burke’s Butchers, Killorglin and Miltown
BEST ICE CREAM: Murphy’s Ice Cream, Dingle
BEST TAKEAWAY: The Fish Box, Dingle
BEST BEACH: Inch
BEST HOTEL: Ballygarry Estate Hotel and Spa, Tralee
BEST TOURIST ATTRACTION: Muckross House, Park, Gardens and Traditional Farm
BEST FESTIVAL: Rose of Tralee
BEST CLUB JERSEY: Austin Stacks GAA Club
BEST SANDWICH: Kingdom Food and Wine Store, Tralee
BEST BEAUTY SALON: Exposé Beauty Lounge and Hair Studio
BEST FAMILY BUSINESS: Sandy Feet Farm, Camp, Tralee
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