Ramsay forgets ceremony anger after cleaning up at restaurant awards

Two years after he dismissed them as "incestuous" and refused to attend, Gordon Ramsay made a triumphant return last night to the awards ceremony for London's best restaurants.

He won the top prize ahead of well-known chefs such as Jamie Oliver and Giorgio Locatelli. Ramsay, who was given the prize at the London Restaurant Awards for his eponymous restaurant in Chelsea, also won the best French restaurant award.

The triumph for Ramsay, who holds six Michelin stars for his three UK restaurants, came after he refused to attend in 2001 when he was not nominated in any categories.

At the time, the chef accused the judges of the awards of letting their "personal emotions and inflated egos" affect their decisions.

The night was less successful for Oliver, who had been tipped to win the best new restaurant prize for his venture, Fifteen. The recruitment of under-privileged young people and their training in the restaurant's kitchen featured in a television documentary.

Oliver, whose success at Fifteen made him the toast of the town for food critics and philanthropists, was beaten to the newcomer award by Thyme in Clapham, south London. But Oliver was awarded a special prize rewarding investment in new talent.

Other winners included Locatelli's Locanda Locatelli in the West End for the best Italian restaurant.

Hakkasan, which earlier this year became the only Chinese restaurant to win a star in the Michelin Guide, took the prize for best Chinese restaurant .

The award for the best chef in London went to David Thompson, based at the Thai restaurant Nahm.