Authenticity, attentive service and a great selection of products are the qualities many of the 15,000 readers regard highly when they nominated their favourite shop.
For reader Rita Lovett it's Liston's, on Dublin's Camden Street because "Generic Produce has no meaning here. Everything is carefully sourced and of very high quality. The ambience alone will make you stay there. More of this type of shop please!!"
Hundreds of nominations have been made for the cafes and teashops and artisan food shops that make an effort to stock delicious gluten-free breads and cakes. Marie Morley loves The Gluten Free Kitchen Company, Tralee, Co Kerry. Debbie Johnston, a coeliac, finds the chocolate donut at Antoinette's Bakery "addictive". Reader Meabh O'Leary agrees. She has "a massive wheat allergy and an equally massive love for cakes so when my doctor told me I couldn't consume the things I loved most I was at a loss." The donuts are "to die for", she says. Louise Keane is voting for Bear Market Cafe, Blackrock, Co. Dublin because as a coeliac it's "fantastic coffee and extensive range of gluten-free treats" make it a place that in which "she can feel normal again :)"
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In Dublin Niamh Carroll loves Tropical Popical, the South William Street nail bar that she has nominated in the Best Salon category because it offers "quality service at a competitive price". It is "modern and efficient - all that's needed these days", she says.
The Decent Cigar Emporium, sequestered off Grafton Street in an upstairs space is a favourite with reader Alex Tucker because of its fine Cuban cigars and staff who know what they're talking about. "As soon as you walk up the stairs you are greeted with a smile, a lovely heartfelt welcome and as you are handed your strong Cuban coffee browsing becomes a leisure activity."
Chef Mark Lanigan loves the bounty on display in Ardkeen Stores, Waterford. "Simply put it has more artisan and especially local producers than any other store in Waterford which adds up to an amazing shopping experience thanks to the friendly helpful staff."
Just walking into Shutterbug, Kilkenny makes Katie O'Brien feel special. The shop sells a mix of vintage and branded clothes, as well as shoes and accessories. "I've spent so many hours lost among the incredible clothes. You're guaranteed to find an absolute treasure every time you visit. The staff go above and beyond the call of duty to make sure that you're happy and cared for. I don't think it is possible for me or any of my friends to go to Kilkenny for a day's shopping and not go in!"
This year we've enlisted experts in their fields to sit on our judging panel, a new feature of the competition. Simon Pratt, MD of Avoca, Edmund Shanahan, a retail, fashion and homewares consultant, fashion designers and Frockadvisor columnists Sonya Lennon and Brendan Courtney and Irish Times journalist Alanna Gallagher.
Get voting.