Boston Tea Party has been named cafe chain of the year.
The company, which has a branch in Kingsmead Square, won the Cafe or Coffee Bar Chain Award at the Café Life Awards 2014.
Beating the likes of Costa, Coffee #1 and Harris and Hoole, Boston Tea Party was praised for the breadth of its menu – from coffee and cakes, to meals and range of wines and beers.
All those shortlisted were visited by an independent judge who reported on factors such as atmosphere, facilities, cleanliness and product range as well as customer service.
Managing director of Boston Tea Party, Sam Roberts, said: "Despite lots of external evidence to the contrary, I have always believed it is possible to get better as you get bigger. A challenge I often frame as the 'scale versus soul' debate.
"This year we opened our 15th cafe and for the first time received this accolade, which is hopefully a good sign that our soul is in good shape."