TWO top hotels in the Helensburgh and Lomond area have scooped a total of four prizes at the 2017 Scottish Hotel Awards.

The Loch Lomond Arms in Luss and the Knockderry House Hotel in Cove were both celebrating after Sunday’s glittering ceremony in Glasgow.

The Loch Lomond Arms was chosen as Events Hotel of the Year, while the hotel’s chef, Allan McLaughlin, took home the award for Executive Chef of the Year.

And the Luss hotel’s triumphant night was completed when employee James Munro was announced as one of eight Rising Star award winners, chosen from hotels across the country.

But local celebrations didn’t end there, as Knockderry owners Murdo and Beth MacLeod picked up the prize for Fine Dining Restaurant Hotel of the Year.

The Loch Lomond Arms, located in the centre of the picturesque Loch Lomondside village, had been chosen as the regional winner of the Events Hotel accolade for the Argyll and Lomond area in January, and went on to scoop the national prize at the glittering presentation night at the Crowne Plaza.

Iain Hamilton, general manager of the Loch Lomond Arms, said: “We are absolutely thrilled with this fantastic recognition from the Scottish Hotel Awards.

“To be awarded Events Hotel of the Year 2017 is a wonderful achievement for the Loch Lomond Arms and a fitting recognition of the events service delivered by Valerie Jones and the events team.”

“We are delighted that James Munro has been awarded a Rising Star. This essentially recognises him as a young talent within the entire Scottish hospitality industry. Graeme Gordon, our bar manager, was highly commended, and the hotel bar was shortlisted for an award.”

On Allan McLaughlin’s award as Executive Chef of the Year, Mr Hamilton said: “This is a fitting recognition of the wonderful seasonal menus he creates for the Loch Lomond Arms and Luss Seafood Bar, as well as his emphasis on locally sourced produce. We look forward to welcoming many more guests to the Loch Lomond Arms.”

At Knockderry, meanwhile, Beth MacLeod said the Fine Dining accolade was a reflection on all the members of the hotel team.

She told the Advertiser: “We were particularly delighted with the award because it’s a real team award.

“It’s not just about the chefs and front-of-house staff. The whole hotel has to work together to achieve an award as prestigious as this, and it’s a feather in the cap of the whole team.”

Beth also said she hoped the awards might persuade more young people to consider the hospitality industry as a career. “Our industry is all about people,” she added. “Hospitality sometimes gets a bit of a bad press as not being a place for people to build a career, but it’s an industry where you really can come in with no experience at all and make it all the way to the top.

“All our people like working with people, and with the right attitude you can go anywhere in this industry.”

The two local hotels were both named as regional winners for the Argyll and Lomond area in January, with Knockderry winning the regional Fine Dining Restaurant Hotel and Country House Hotel prizes and the Loch Lomond Arms capturing the Hotel Bar and Events Hotel prizes. The Loch Lomond Arms also won the Country Hotel of the Year honour at the Prestige Hotel Awards in February.