Local Tauranga restaurant Own Masala, has taken out the top spot in the Indian category in this year's Menulog Restaurant Awards.

The Indian cuisine restaurant is located on Eleventh Ave and is owned and operated by Sita Argal.

Sita, who has more than 20 years cooking experience, opened the restaurant in 2014 after being encouraged by his customers to create his own Indian dishes.

'After so long cooking and working in kitchens, I know what people want from a local family restaurant and that's great service and tasty food. We use a whole palette of spicy, sweet and hot flavours to create unfamiliar food that is both creative, enticing and caters to a wide range of customers,” he says.

Rather than having a signature dish, Own Masala's Tikka Masala, Lamb Curry, and Goat Curry are there of the most popular dishes on the menu.

Sita says his business has thrived since it opened and with the steady growth of the online food industry, this has helped the restaurant's reach into the community even further.

'Being on the Menulog platform has helped me expand my business by providing access to a larger number of customers meaning more people get to taste our delicious food which is exactly what you want. In this way Menulog is a natural extension of our business and helps make us grow and be profitable.”

'The Menulog Restaurant Awards are a great way to recognise and reward the diverse range of restaurants that work each and every day to serve delicious food to people across the country. We have over 900 restaurant partners so receiving one of the bi-annual is no mean feat. This is a fantastic achievement for these local restaurants,” says Menulog's Commercial Director, Rory Murphy.

The Menulog Restaurant Awards will kick off again in 2019, with the next season's recipients to be announced in Summer 2019.

For the full list of Menulog Restaurant Award Winners, visit restaurantawards.menulog.co.nz