Pizza winner Sano takes Independent Restaurant of the Year as Banditos is crowned Best Mexican
At the 12th annual Just Eat Awards, the spotlight landed on pizza as Sano Pizza won Best Pizza and the top Independent Restaurant of the Year prize, while Galway’s Banditos was crowned Best Mexican — outcomes that reframed expectations about regional winners and national recognition for pizza and street-food operators during the ceremony. pizza appears as both a category and a vehicle for wider industry momentum.
Pizza: What did the awards actually decide and who decided them?
Verified facts: Sano Pizza was awarded Best Pizza and was also named Independent Restaurant of the Year at the 12th annual Just Eat Awards. Banditos, a Galway restaurant based in Oranmore, was crowned Best Mexican. Winners were selected from a shortlist of over 105 nominees. Thousands of people across Ireland cast votes, and winners were announced at an event held in Fallon and Byrne in Dublin City on April 1. Amanda Roche-Kelly, Managing Director of Just Eat Ireland, issued comments celebrating the quality, flavour and variety across Ireland’s food scene and thanking voters and partner restaurants.
Analysis: The dual recognition for Sano Pizza — both category winner and independent champion — signals that a pizza operator can convert popular consumer voting into the platform-wide accolade of Independent Restaurant of the Year. The mechanics implied by the shortlist and mass voting point to consumer choice as a decisive factor: thousands of votes from a pool drawn from more than 105 nominees produced category winners that ranged from local independents to national brands.
What do the awards say about regional diversity and independent spots?
Verified facts: Banditos was named Best Mexican for delivering bold, vibrant flavours and an authentic take on Mexican street food, building a loyal following in the west of Ireland for fresh ingredients and flavour-packed dishes. Summer Inn was named Best Chain; Ten10 took Best Breakfast & Coffee; Mad Egg was named Best Burger & American; Carved won Best Lunch; Greenville Deli won Best Healthy & Salads. Named individuals associated with winning restaurants appearing at the event include Jamie Goodwin, Jamie Kelliher and Shane Geoghegan from Banditos; Jarlath Wang and Oscar You from Summer Inn; Ryan Doyle and Graham Rayner from Ten10; and founders Conor Sheridan and Stephen O’Reilly of Mad Egg.
Analysis: The awards list demonstrates a spread of winners across cuisine types and business models: independent neighbourhood operators, specialised chains, and classical category leaders. Banditos’ recognition as Best Mexican highlights regional culinary strength outside Dublin, while Sano Pizza’s double win underscores how a single concept can dominate both its category and the independent field. The presence of multiple Dublin winners alongside a west-of-Ireland Best Mexican suggests voter engagement both inside and outside the capital.
What is not yet clear (verified uncertainty): The awards process produced winners from the shortlist and voter pool named above, but detailed vote tallies, the precise criteria beyond public voting, and any breakdown of regional voting patterns were not published in the materials released at the event.
Accountability and next steps: The public record from the event establishes winners and the scale of participation but leaves gaps on vote distribution and selection thresholds. For greater transparency and to inform operators and consumers, the awards organiser and named officials such as Amanda Roche-Kelly, Managing Director of Just Eat Ireland, could publish vote counts, regional breakdowns and category judging criteria. That information would allow a clearer assessment of how a pizza operator achieved both category and independent honours and how regional favourites such as Banditos compete on a national stage.
Final note: The 12th annual Just Eat Awards confirmed that pizza — in this cycle represented most prominently by Sano Pizza — can be both a crowd favourite and a marker of independent success, while cuisine specialists such as Banditos can secure national recognition for regional excellence.
