Café Society Awards 2015

The greatly anticipated annual Café Society Awards sponsored by Illovo Sugar SA and brought to you by the Sunday Tribune Newspaper, took place on Tuesday the 27th of October 2015 at Duke and Duchess in Umhlanga. There was a buzz in the air as coffee fans and the top finalists in each of the four area categories (the South Coast, Pietermaritzburg and Midlands, Central Durban as well as Durban North and the North Coast) awaited the announcement of the winners. This year saw quite a few new faces walk away with the top honours alongside some old favourites.

Darrell de Wet, Marketing Manager for Illovo Sugar SA, commented on how pleased he was with the growth of the Café Society Awards over the past few years. According to de Wet, “We were thrilled to see a few new faces walk away with awards this year along with many old favourites who have risen to the challenge every year. Not only did all the past winners who remained in the top three work tirelessly to maintain their standards but the presence of some newcomers also shows how hard people have worked to be recognised for the first time. It’s very rewarding to see the genuine delight on the faces of the winners when their names are announced as it just goes to show how much credibility these awards now carry and what it means to people in the coffee and hospitality industry in KZN to win this award. Illovo Sugar SA is passionate about supporting the communities we operate in, so we are very proud to sponsor the Café Society Awards in KZN,” de Wet enthused.

Liam Joyce, Lifestyle Journalist at Independent Newspapers KZN, was delighted with this year’s turnout and also with the decision to announce the winners on the night. “This is Sunday Tribune’s 16th year of running the competition and Illovo’s 13th year of being the main sponsor. The excitement and anticipation was tangible this year as it was the first year that winners were announced at the awards ceremony before the results were published in the newspaper. It is clear that the love for coffee won at the end of the day and we look forward to another successful year in 2016,” said Joyce.

The 2015 Café Society winners announced were:

Best Coffee – South Coast:

1st Place: Beaver Creek Coffee Estate (Port Edward)
2nd Place: Tea @ Baytree (Shelly Beach)
3rd Place: Mojo’z Café (Shelly Beach)

Best Coffee – Pietermaritzburg and Midlands:

1st Place: Terbodore Coffee Roasters (Curry’s Post)
2nd Place: The Olde Duck (Underberg)
3rd Place: Essence (PMB)

Best Coffee – Durban:
1st Place: Stretta Café (Hillcrest)
2nd Place: The Factory Café (Glenwood)
3rd Place: The Bean Green Coffee Roastery (Glenwood)

Best Coffee – North Coast:
1st Place: Duke & Duchess (Umhlanga Ridge)
2nd Place: Republik  (Durban North)
3rd Place: Wonderland (Linc Church, Salt Rock)

Barista Personality Award:

1st Place: Musa Magwaza (Stretta)
2nd Place: Maverick (Duke and Duchess)
3rd Place: Mac (Republik)

Everyone who attended enjoyed celebrating with the winners and it was clear that these committed coffee fans are eagerly looking forward to next year’s Café Society Awards! Look out for a list of the Top 100 Coffee Shops around KZN in a special insert released in the Sunday Tribune on the 1st of November 2015.