Shining a national spotlight on neighborhood restaurants

(NAPS)—If you’re like many Americans, you have a favorite neighborhood restaurant where you can enjoy delicious food and an attentive staff—and now you can give them more than just a good tip. You can help shine the spotlight on your local treasure with the “Neighborhood to Nation” Recipe Contest from General Mills Foodservice.

The 2nd annual contest celebrates the one-of-a-kind dishes created by local, independent restaurants that are truly the heart and soul of their community. Restaurants have the opportunity to get national recognition for their specialty dishes that reflect their local flavor and the chance to win a prize package worth $50,000 including $10,000 to share with a local charity.

While the contest is open only to independent, family dining or neighborhood restaurants, anyone can encourage a favorite diner to enter. Here’s how to get your favorite local restaurant in on the action:

  • Tell them about the Neighborhood to Nation Recipe Contest and share this article or tell them to visit www.Neighborhoodto Nation.com.
  • From Jan. 4 to Feb. 29, 2016, restaurants can submit an original breakfast, entrée or dessert recipe or create a new food item that uses at least one ingredient from General Mills’ list of eligible products.
  • Three finalists will travel to General Mills’ headquarters in Minneapolis in June to meet celebrity chef Amanda Freitag of Food Network’s “Chopped” and “American Diner Revival” and author of “The Chef Next Door: A Pro Chef’s Recipes for Fun, Fearless Home Cooking.”
  • The Grand Prize Recipe Winner will receive $40,000 and a $10,000 donation for a local charity; the First Place Winner, $15,000, and the Second Place Winner, $10,000.

“The Neighborhood to Nation Recipe Contest gives independent restaurants an opportunity to shine, get recognized for the amazing food that showcases their local flavor and potentially win a nice cash prize with a donation to help a charity in their own backyard,” said Freitag. “I look forward to this year’s celebration at General Mills and to meeting this year’s finalists.”

The official rules are online at www.NeighborhoodtoNation.com. For more information, independent family restaurants should contact their General Mills Foodservice sales representative, call (800) 215.6120 or visit http://www.generalmillscf.com/recipe-contest/rules.

Independent restaurants really take the cake. Now, their cakes and other dishes can win cash for themselves and a local charity.