SA hospitality honoured at inaugural Luxe 100 Best awards

ON 1 November, 2022 the first annual Luxe 100 Best awards ceremony, celebrating the best of South African hospitality, took place at The Houghton Hotel in Johannesburg.

The Luxe 100 Best was introduced following the success of the prestigious Luxe Restaurant Awards which, now in its fourth year, honours the finest contributions to the South African restaurant industry.

Mmbatho Molefe (and guest), Best Chef in South Africa; her modern Zulu restaurant Emazulwini is at Makers Landing, Cape Town

The Luxe 100 Best reflects the diversity of South Africa’s luxury hospitality sector and celebrates the growth of the country’s product offering as well as positioning South Africa as a globally competitive destination.

The Luxe 100 Best winners were announced to an intimate audience of 150 esteemed guests and industry VIPs. The award categories ranged from the 10 Best Bars in South Africa to the 10 Best Game Lodges in South Africa, with winners emerging from across the country.

Ryan Cole from Salsify (Cape Town), named Best Restaurant in South Africa

Renowned SA celebrity, Shashi Naidoo MC’ed the event in style, while those in attendance included culinary social media superstars Mogau Seshoene and Zanele Van Zyl, as well as celebrated food critic Steve Steinfeld and entrepreneur Nicky Van Der Walt with his wife and model, Lee-Ann Liebenberg.

Caig Smart, Tintswalo Atlantic (Cape Town), Best Boutique Hotel in South Africa

The nominees were selected via industry experts and customer reviews from a trusted database. All nominees in the award categories were ranked according to their “Luxe Score”, determining their placement in the relevant categories.

The panel of judges was convened by Chad Fourie, chief judge of the Luxe Awards and managing director of The Hospitality Counsel, who had this to say: “The Luxe 100 Best Awards supports, promotes and develops the South African travel and tourism industry by identifying and rewarding excellence and inspiring its practitioners to continually raise the standards of their product and service offering.”