A SOUTHAMPTON venue was named ‘Restaurant of the Year 2018’ in a contest to find the nation’s top Indian eatery.

Kuti’s Brasserie, which recently reopened at the Royal Pier, Town Quay, received the top honour during the International Indian Chef Awards on Monday night.

Saints legend Francis Benali travelled up to the capital to hand over the award Arman Miah, who manages the restaurant, who accepted it in front of an audience around around 400 Indian restaurant owners and chefs.

Mr Miah said: “It’s great to receive this award for our newly opened restaurant.

“Since reopening, we’ve been very busy but executive chef Ravi Rao has been very deliberate in maintaining the highest quality.

“We only use fresh ingredients while many of our competitors use frozen ingredients – this is part of the Kuti’s formula for maintaining the best possible taste. This award is testament to the hard work of all our staff and I look forward to putting it on display at the Royal Pier.”

The restaurant reopened in August after it closed its sister premises in Oxford Street, Southampton.

Kuti’s Brasserie, which has a number of takeaways, across the city, is run by Kuti Miah, who set up his first restaurant in 1993.

His flagship site on the pier has been revamped and offers customers an even wider selection of food.

There is now a bar upstairs called The Gatehouse 1833, named after its original name and year it was built.

Kuti’s Brasserie has also been shortlisted for a prize at the Asian Curry Awards on Sunday, which will take place at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.