Terms and Conditions

Entry Requirements & Categories
Category Limits: Each entrant can enter their premises into a maximum of five categories.

Select one only from “Bar Type.”

Select one only from “Food Type” (if applicable).

Select up to four categories from “General.”

Food Category Restrictions: Entrants may only enter one of the three food categories: either “Restaurant Bar of the Year” OR “Gastro Bar of the Year” OR “Bar Food of the Year.”

Submission Format: All entries must be submitted via the official online entry system (Openwater). Handwritten forms or entries submitted in different formats will not be accepted.

Mandatory Attachments: Entrants must attach at least one image and copies of their menus (if entering food categories).

Judging Process & Site Visits
Inspection Period: Judging will take place between March and July 2026.

Adjudication Waiver: Entrants must complete a release form waiving the cost of adjudication. This must be returned to events@ashvillemediagroup.com or uploaded to the entry form by 3rd April 2026.

Refund Process: Judges will pay for their drinks/meals and retain the receipt. Upon departure, they will present the receipt and waiver form to your staff for a full refund. Failure to accept signed waivers will render the entry void.

Sponsorship & Data Sharing (Square Partnership)
Headline Sponsor: Square is the Headline Sponsor of the 2026 Bar of the Year Awards.

GDPR Compliance: In accordance with The Data Protection Acts and SI 336/2011, entrant data is primarily used for the administration of the Awards.

Third-Party Sharing: We will only share your contact details with Square if you have provided explicit, affirmative consent via the opt-in checkbox on the entry form.

Annual Revenue Range: We use revenue data to ensure a level playing field. It helps us compare like-with-like so that business size doesn’t disadvantage smaller, high-quality venues. Small (€250K and under), Medium (€250k – €500k), Large (€500k + )

Purpose of Sharing: Where consent is granted, details will be shared with Square (Squareup Europe Ltd) to provide exclusive hardware discounts, fee-free processing offers, or payment solution information.

Privacy & Data Systems Statement
Ashville Media Group complies with The Data Protection Acts 1988 & 2003 and SI 336/2011. Our websites and domains (the “Site”) utilize the following secure third-party service providers:

Application & Judging: Entries are managed through Openwater (*.secure-platform.com). By submitting an entry, you acknowledge that your data is hosted securely in the United States. You can view their Privacy Policy [here].

Ticketing: Event ticketing and registrations are managed by Ticket Tailor. Their Privacy Statement is available [here].

Payment Processing: All credit card transactions for entries or tickets are handled by Stripe. We do not store full credit card details on our servers. Stripe’s Privacy Statement is available [here].

Email Communications: Our newsletters and event updates are managed by Send.ie. Their Privacy Statement is available [here].

Public Relations: Our newsroom and media relations system is provided by Prowly. Their Privacy Statement is available [here].

Hosting: Our websites are maintained on Enterprise Managed Hosting through GoDaddy. Their Privacy Statement is available [here].

By submitting a Communication, you represent and warrant that you have the right to submit the Communication to Ashville Media Group. You also represent and warrant that the Communication is original, was created by you, and does not contain any material or information whose inclusion in the Communication and/or use by Ashville Media Group in connection with Ashville Media Group’s exploitation of the Communication hereunder would violate or infringe upon any copyright, trademark, right of publicity or persona, right of privacy, moral rights, or other personal or proprietary right of any person or entity or violate any law or regulation.

Each Communication submitted by you must consist entirely of material and/or information that is owned by you, including but not limited to any text, music, recordings, illustrations, photographic images, and video clips. By submitting a Communication, you represent and warrant that it does not contain any material or information that is owned or controlled by anyone other than you.

Ashville Media Group full privacy statement can be read here.

We participate in and comply with The Data Protection Acts 1988 & 2003 (“The Acts”) and Statutory Instrument Number 336 of 2011 European Communities (Electronic Communications Networks and Services)(Privacy and Electronic Communications) Regulations 2011 (“SI 336/2011”)

Ashville Media Group Events websites and domains, including service offered through Openwater booking service *.secure-platform.com (Privacy policy Here), and any other webpages, subdomains, country level domain variants that link or refer to this Privacy Policy (collectively, our “Site”), all of the services available on or through the Sites or otherwise provided by us (including our application programming interfaces

Our Credit Card transactions are all handled using Realex system online (Privacy Statement)

If you have any questions or concerns at any time, please do not hesitate to contact us at the address above or by contacting us at privacy@ashvillemediagroup.com .