The British Street Food Awards 2025

The biggest street food competition in the world will be parking up at The Fire Station's Parade Ground. 

Launched in 2009, the British Street Food Awards is all about recognising the best of the 10,000 new food heroes who are selling food on our streets – and the Northern Heat is coming to Sunderland for the first time in May.

9 of the best traders from all across the North of England will be trying to win the public vote and impress celebrity judges to make it through to the 2025 British Street Food Awards final.

The British Street Food Awards have been brought to Sunderland as part of a region-wide partnership between The Fire Station, Food and Drink North East, Sunderland BID, Destination North East, Local Heroes, Sunderland Music City, Sunderland City Council and Nationwide Caterers Association (NCASS). 

With live music and DJs across the bank holiday courtesy of Sunderland Music City plus a resident food market and traders trying to win votes with taster portions and seasonal specials, the northern heats on May 23-25 at The Fire Station will be something special for the region.

A British Street Food Award is a prize that genuinely changes lives. Wingmans, big winners at the BSFA and the ESFA in 2017, recently opened up their second ‘proper’ restaurant in Hoxton. MEATliquor, who won at the Awards back in 2009 now have nine sites. Bao have five. BSFA winners go places. Literally. This year the British Street Food Awards champion will be going to Germany to compete in the grand final of the 2025 European Street Food Awards in Munich.

Appearing at the British Street Food Awards’ Northern Heat will be:

The Greekster
The Greekster pride themselves on standing against the dumbing-down of Greek food, aiming to deliver authentic, street-friendly versions of genuine dishes. Their signature dishes are taken straight from Nana’s recipe book, including beer-braised pork shoulder skewers and leeks served with sausage that’s been dried and traditionally smoked over oak wood from the north of Greece.

Craving Asian
Craving Asian uses their unique experiences as British Asian kids and ABC (American-born Chinese) to create next-level cookies and sandwiches. “We had the privilege of access to two cultures growing up,” says Phoebe. “One that came from our immigrant households and the place we grew up in.” The result? Some extraordinary ingredient pairings. Whether that means Taiwanese Fried Chicken Sandos, homemade Miso Toffee Cookies, or Hong Kong French Toast, you won’t be disappointed.

Sizzling Scoop (Friday only)
Thought you couldn’t improve on ice cream? Sizzling Scoop is here to prove you wrong. Offering up a cold, creamy scoop encased in a crisp, golden shell, topped with indulgent flavours and toppings, each bite is a delightful contrast of texture and temperature. Some say the idea is Mexican; some say it’s Chinese. But everybody says it’s delicious, and Sizzling Scoop is bringing this fried ice cream sensation to a UK street food audience.

My Sister’s Kitchen
Based here in Sunderland, this homegrown community food project is working to spread the word about their awesome work. Driven by her own lived experiences of the challenges young people encounter, co-founder Jo created the Raising Dough street food project to offer training and volunteering opportunities to young people facing barriers to employment and education. Now, the vendor is serving up both great food and a brighter future for our youth.

Saffa Soul
Bringing the flavours of Johannesburg to Manchester, Saffa Soul founder Huggy has reinvented South Africa’s iconic Bunny Chow for the street food market. By stuffing sweet Cape Malay curry into a smaller, homemade, crusty loaf, Huggy is helping hungry Brits enjoy this classic delicacy in a more manageable way. Saffa Soul is beloved for its Ama Bokke wrap. Chicken is marinated for 24 hours and cooked over Sekelbos wood, imported from South Africa, then stuffed into a handcrafted roti made according to Huggy’s family recipe.

My Delhi
Another local favourite representing Sunderland, My Delhi has already earned a BBC Britain’s Top Takeaways award, and has won Argie Bhaji, Wylam Brewery’s annual Indian food battle, for the last three years. They’ll be looking to land another title with their signature Aslam Tandoori Chops, which pays homage to Delhi’s legendary street food scene, inspired by the iconic Aslam Chicken.

Flying Cows
Two-time winner of the Best Burger category at previous British Street Food Awards, Flying Cows will be showing off their family farm’s Dexter beef burgers at the Northern heats. Established in 2011, the Flying Cows team is now street food royalty, slinging hand-smashed patties and artisan buns for legions of burger fans.

Chicken Ting
Chicken Ting dishes up banging fried chicken made with ingredients sourced from local farms, prepared by hand, and fried in sustainably sourced oil in The Cluck Truck. From stacked sandwiches and chicken tenders to flavoursome wings, Chicken Ting is chicken done right.

The Fire Truck
Got room for dessert? Usually found serving up wood-fired pizzas, The Fire Station’s own Fire Truck will be hoping to make its mark on the competition with its innovative take on the humble ice cream sandwich. The venue’s trademark silver Airstream will be dishing up a dessert that brings the heat: hot, homemade doughnuts stuffed with ice cream. Freshly fried until toasty and golden, sliced and stacked with silky scoops of cold, creamy deliciousness. Add in rich sauces, wild flavour combos, and a whole lotta love, and you’ve got a street food sandwich like no other.