Webby Awards names new upstart best food and beverage website

A web start-up which launched last year and is described as the largest social recipe network in the world has been named the best food and beverage site at the Webby Awards.

In just over a year, California-based Foodily.com beat out nominees like the formidable New York Times Dining & Wining section to be named the best in its category at the 16th edition of the Webbys. As of May 2, about 32,730 people ‘liked' the site on Facebook.

In addition to being a repository of recipe ideas, Foodily.com pitches itself as a food-based online social network that allows users to share their favorite recipes and what they made for dinner via Facebook.

Users also have access to a feed of recipes from celebrity TV chef Cat Cora, WebMD.com and US chef Marcus Samuelsson's ‘dude' food site Food Republic.

Other features on the site allow users to search for recipes in categories like low-carb, low-fat, top-rated, blogs, and ‘quick' recipes, and customize their search requirements. Every recipe also comes with nutritional information.

Winners were selected by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a body of more than a thousand web experts, business figures, visionaries and creative celebrities and former Webby award winners. Academy members include Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post, The Simpsons creator Matt Groening and musicians Beck and David Bowie.

Meanwhile, the People's Voice Award in the Food & Beverage category went to Toronto-based agency BBDO for a 2011 ad campaign that invited consumers to write the ending of a sci-fi commercial in which one of two chip flavors -- Onion Rings ‘n Ketchup or Buffalo Wings and Ranch -- must be destroyed.

This year, more than 1.5 million votes were cast from 200 countries.

Longtime Webby favorite Epicurious.com got the People's Voice Award in categories like Best Lifestyle Website, and Best Lifestyle Mobile & Apps for handheld devices.

Members of the academy also agreed, voting the gourmet food site the best in lifestyle, over health and fitness site Shape.com and home improvement site thisoldhouse.com.

For the full results, visit http://bit.ly/Hyhr14.