Meet three of the eateries which have been named finalists in the annual Taste of Kent Awards.

Café Nucleus, The Butcher's Block and Austen's of Rochester have their eyes set on success at the ceremony on March 5.

Austen's of Rochester, based in the High Street, has been nominated for Excellence in Customer Service and Kent Local Food Retailer of the Year.

The farm shop has a history of success after winning the local food retailer of the year award in 2018 and making it to the final last year.

Founder Andy Austen said: "Our local and loyal customers have been fantastic in supporting us and recognising all the hard work, effort and high levels of customer service my staff and I work to by voting for us.

"I have a wonderful team that I’d like to thank. They work harder than you could ever imagine to ensure our business runs efficiently and the customer experience is consistently delivered to high standards and always with the customer in mind."

The Butcher's Block, in Church Street, Burham, has been nominated for the Kent Pub or Bistro of the Year.

Owners Joanna and Simon Rickwood hope to retain their title after winning the award last year.

Joanna said: "We are over the moon to have reached the final three for the second year running at the Taste of Kent Awards.

"We are super proud of our amazing, hard-working, loyal team and extremely grateful to all our customers who voted for us.

"We pride ourselves on using local suppliers that provide us with high quality produce and supporting small businesses that supply us with their delicious home-grown ingredients."

Café Nucleus in Rochester High Street is up for the Kent Coffee Shop or Tearoom of the Year award.

The artisan hub hopes to continue in the footsteps of its sister café in Chatham after it won the award last year.

Aaron Telford, director of Café Nucleus Rochester, said: "We’re ecstatic to be in the top three of the taste of Kent Awards.

"It means so much for our team to be recognised after only being open seven months."

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