Metro Food Awards and Tripadvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Awards 2025 recognises Koinonia Indian Restaurant, on St Mark’s Walk, Newark, as one of best restaurants in the world

An Indian restaurant whic aims to “treat every guest like family” has been recognised as one of the world’s best with two recent award wins.

Koinonia, of St Mark’s Lane, Newark, has won the Metro Food Awards’ Best Global Indian Restaurant award

The independent restaurant specialises in South Indian Keralan cuisine and has become well known in the town for quality food and good customer service.

The award ceremony, which was held in Thiruvananthapuram, India, is recognised as “Kerala’s most significant honour in the hospitality sector”.

Koinonia is owned by George Chummar and Thomas Chacko, who over the past 14 years have worked hard to make the restaurant a success in Newark.

George said: “Being recognised by the Metro Food Awards is especially meaningful because this award honours not just great food, but excellence across hospitality, hygiene, consistency and service.

“It reminds us that what we do at Koinonia Restaurant matters — to our guests, to our team and to our wider community.

“For our restaurant, this award is a milestone. Of all the awards we’ve received over the past 14 years, this one stands out because it signals that our identity — serving authentic Kerala cuisine with warm, family-style service in the UK — is being acknowledged on a broader level.

“This recognition reinforces our ongoing commitment; to our chefs who keep traditions alive, to our service staff who treat every guest like family, and to our ethos of giving back.

“It’s not just a trophy on the shelf — it’s a promise to continue raising the bar.

“We view this honour as both a celebration and a responsibility. A celebration of how far we’ve come; a responsibility to keep growing, keep serving, and keep being a place where community, food and fellowship meet.”

Additionally, after receiving hundreds of positive reviews online, the restaurant has also earned a win at the Tripadvisor Travelers’ Choice Awards 2025.

The awards recognise businesses which consistently earn positive reviews from their diners, and is based on genuine feedback from anyone who has left a first-hand review on Tripadvisor over the past year.

This means places Koinonia remain among the top 10% of restaurant listings around the world — after receiving the same accolade in 2024 — with an average score of 4.8 on the platform from over 1,500 reviews.

Restaurant operations manager, Sanju Susan, said: “This is because of the fantastic reviews we have received from our guest.

“Especially the new guests, who have left reviews to say they are definitely coming back and that is something we are very happy about.

“We want to serve the best food and provide the best customer service.

“We always make sure it feels like home, and that comes from the custom of hosting that we all learned from our families in Kerala.

“We are really happy to be here [in Newark] promoting our food, our customs and our culture, and to live in this fantastic community.”

She added that the team of chefs pay close attention customer reviews to ensure the food is just right, and are happy to accomodate to individual preferences and dietary requirement, such as offering vegan and gluten-free options.