TWO brothers have put Newquay firmly on the national culinary map after winning national titles.

Mo and Jay Miah, who run Zaman’s in Henver Road, won top awards at the Culinary International Fusion Chef Championships.

Mo was awarded Culinary Excellence 2025/26, which recognises long-term achievement, resilience and culinary leadership while Jay was crowned Fusion Chef UK 2025/26 following the knockout competition, which started in May.

The wins against some of the best chefs in the country are particularly poignant given Mo’s recent health battles after he received a kidney transplant. He was facing life-threatening kidney complications, and a prolonged hospital stay but was discharged nine days before the gala awards night at the Royale Suite in Birmingham on November 24.

The exclusive five-course gala dinner was an elegant, celebratory affair attended by more than 300 guests, which included chefs and industry figures.

The judges praised both brothers for technical skill, creativity and cultural storytelling in their dishes.

Jay, who was competing for the first time, impressed the judges with inventive fusion plates that balanced tradition and modern technique. Tarter. reinvented Bangladeshi fish pakoras using pangasius fillets in chickpea flour, finished in a Korean-style sticky sweet-chilli and tamarind glaze.

His main was a radical reinterpretation of Nasi Goreng using tapioca pearls instead of rice, paired with slow-cooked chicken breast infused with a Bengali village tomato “tok” seafood broth, a dish that blended Southeast Asian and Bengali coastal flavours.

The three Miah brothers, Mo, Jay and Abid, learned to cook under their father Manik Miah, one of the early pioneers of the Indian restaurant industry in the UK who began working in the trade in 1968. That legacy is central to Zaman’s identity - food made with skill, heart and deep respect for tradition.

Mo has been invited as part of the prize to compete on the international stage at the Grand Sultan Resort in Sylhet, Bangladesh in 2026, health permitting.

Mo, who has won several national cooking awards, said: “To win this award after everything I’ve been through including dialysis, transplant, and a frightening hospital stay feels like a blessing. Cooking has always kept me going, and I’m proud to represent Newquay on the national and international stage.”

Jay said: “This was my first competition and to come away with the title is unbelievable. I wanted to create dishes that tell our story — our family, our history and the flavours we love. Bringing these trophies back to Cornwall with my brother means everything.”

A spokesperson fort Zaman’s said: “Critics once predicted Mo would pack up within months of opening Zaman’s, but the restaurant has gone from strength to strength and remains a beloved local institution.

“The brothers’ success brings national attention to Cornwall’s growing and diverse food scene. Zaman’s plans to celebrate with its customers and community, including a forthcoming in-restaurant celebration and a limited run of special dishes inspired by the competition menus.

“If Mo is able to travel in 2026, his participation at the Grand Sultan Resort, Sylhet will be an opportunity to showcase Cornwall talent on an international platform — and to build bridges between the UK and Bangladeshi culinary communities.”