A vast selection of culinary innovation and achievement was celebrated at the fifth annual Cumbria Life Food & Drink Awards.

South Cumbrian eateries shone at the awards ceremony with a new Spanish tapas restaurant in Ulverston winning the prestigious Cumbria Life Readers’ Award.

L'al Churrasco, which is located in Market Street in Ulverston, has been a huge success with locals people.

The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Stuart and Pauline Higginson, who run Higginson’s of Grange. The husband and wife partnership source all their meat from local farms, including a small holding of their own. Their butchers has won countless awards for its outstanding Cumbrian meat.

Jonathan and Susan Stott won the Food & Farming Special Award for their business Cartmel Valley Game. The couple specialise in meats such as venison, rabbit and pheasant.

The award for Restaurant of the Year of course went to L’Enclume in Cartmel village. The restaurant has been attracting foodies to the South Lakes for years now and has topped a list of the UK's best restaurants.

Notable for its two awards was Forest Side in Grasmere. The restaurant has recently undergone a make-over and won Best Newcomer and Hotel Restaurant of the Year.

The South Lakes was rich with winners at the awards ceremony with James Cross, from Lake Road Kitchen in Ambleside, scooping the award for Chef of the Year while Homeground in Windermere was named as the Best Cafe.

New business Kin Vodka, based in Newby Bridge, took home the award for Producer of the Year. The company have seen their new toffee-flavoured spirit soar in popularity over the last year.

Richard Eccles, editor of Cumbria Life magazine, said: "If Cumbria is the food capital of the UK outside London then south Cumbria is certainly its beating heart.

"The food scene around Cartmel and now Ambleside is amazing, and in this year's awards it's been great to see so many people striking out on their own and opening cafes and bakeries who have learned their trade in places like L'Enclume and the Drunken Duck.

"It is also great to see people like former postman Lucas Hogg and former letting agent Caroline Davis setting up the Peace and Loaf Bakehouse in Barrow market hall.

"There's a confidence now in food and drink that there's a local market for quality produce as well as from tourists."