New Forest Rivaaz wins Asian Restaurant of the Year Award

Rivaaz in Lymington was awarded the highly coveted title at the awards ceremony held at Grosvenor House in London’s Mayfair on Sunday night, November 21.

Owner of Rivaaz, Shah Malek, said: “We are absolutely over the moon and I think the biggest achievement this year is that we are the first restaurant ever to have won four years in a row.

“To break records and to make history within the awards and within the industry is absolutely phenomenal.

“The whole team feels very very happy and pleased that people are appreciating what we do.”

With an ever-changing menu and a hard-working attitude that Shah ensures runs throughout the business, the team are ecstatic to have won the award again.

Shah, who was awarded Maitre’d of the Year at the awards in 2019, said: “We are never stuck doing the same old thing and we constantly evolve.

“We try and provide a very very personal service when customers come in and I’m always on hand personally.

He added: “I train all my staff to work to a high standard and a high level and they are all amazing people.

“I believe in empowering people and employing people who will represent my business as if it is their own.”

The stellar restaurant owner is passionate not only about the food he serves but also about the service that is given at Rivaaz and isn’t ready to rest easy just yet.

He said: “You’re only as good as your last customer and that customer satisfaction is something that I firmly believe in.

“There are a lot of people who do like to ride the wave on achieving something like this but we will always strive to push new boundaries and to exceed people’s expectations when it comes to dining at Rivaaz.

“We also have a small expansion plan in place where we are hoping to open other restaurants when things have calmed down a little bit with Covid and so on.

“There are plans in the pipeline to expand throughout the south coast.”