Toasting success as local food tour business owner is named Food Entrepreneur of the Year

Portia Woods from Toast The Coast Food Tours has been celebrating in style after winning Food Entrepreneur of the Year at the first ever Northern Ireland Women’s Awards.

Inspiring women were awarded in a range of categories at a glamorous event celebrating female successes in Belfast.

The Awards honoured the talent and hard work of female professionals and entrepreneurs across the region. It celebrated the achievements of women entrepreneurs, business women, professionals, civil servants, charity workers and others that make Northern Ireland a great and more equal place to live and work.

Portia, who hails from Larne in County Antrim, started the business in 2017 after being inspired by the Year of Food & Drink in Northern Ireland.

Anyone who embarks on one of Portia’s food tours will enjoy luxury travel and indulge in a range of handmade, hooked & harvested food from the best of local award-winning producers.

You can taste a fusion of traditional and newly formed recipes, which showcase the best of food on the Causeway Coastal Route and meet friendly faces along the way, hearing their story.

Portia has always been a foodie, even from a young age, and that’s what stirred her passion to set up her own, award winning business: “I celebrated local food every day as a child, and continue to share fantastic local produce with my own family and friends. Whether it’s been through picnicking to making the most of days off school, enjoying a traditional, heart-warming meal at home, or treating ourselves at one of the many stops along the shore, my appreciation of local food has grown into a real passion.

Toast The Coast was created to showcase a dedicated journey that others could experience what I have enjoyed about the fantastic food of Northern Ireland. “This award is such a proud moment for me as it recognises the hard work involved in creating and keeping a food business like this alive.”

Portia has been involved with Mid and East Antrim Borough Council’s tourism clusters, which see key businesses working together to boost footfall to the borough. She was also central to helping council secure a highly commended for the borough in the Foodie Destinations Awards last year.

You can find out more and book tours at www.toastthecoastni.com