Held in London on Thursday 24 April, the UK-wide Public Sector Catering Awards recognise catering businesses and initiatives across the whole of the public sector, including in universities, schools, local government, hospitals, the prison service, and armed forces.

On an evening that hosted 650 attendees and celebrated 19 winners, Reboot Café was shortlisted among seven organisations in the ‘Innovation’ category, where the judges were looking for a product or service innovation that had dramatically changed an operator’s catering strategy.

Queen’s Campus Food and Drink Manager, Kelly Hart, who attended the awards, commented:

“I was delighted to represent Queen’s University Belfast and Reboot Café at these awards, and especially against such impressive competition. Reboot’s innovative and inclusive setup has proven very popular with our students and wider community, and I’m so pleased that the team has been recognised for this at the national level.”

Liz McLaughlin, Director of Student and Campus Experience, said:

“One of the core considerations when setting up Reboot café was that innovation should be inherent in its setup and day-to-day running. When it was launched in partnership with Geek Retreat less than a year ago, our offering was groundbreaking, and it continues to provide a unique gaming facility and café experience in Belfast that we’re really proud of. So a real well done to all the Reboot team on this achievement.”

Reboot Café was launched in August 2024 as a state-of-the-art gaming facility and alcohol-free café for students and the public, providing retro arcade games, a board gaming suite, top-tier games consoles from Nintendo, Playstation, and Xbox, plus VR sets and a state-of-the-art Esports Centre.

Adding to the café’s achievements, Reboot has also earned a five-star rating for Food Hygiene from Belfast City Council, reflecting the high standards set and met by the café team.