20 restaurants were nominated last month, and last night at the glittering DSTV Food Network Eat Out Awards ceremony in Cape Town, the Top 10 restaurants in South Africa were revealed.
The Top 10 Eat Out restaurants for 2013 are:
1. The Test Kitchen
2. Five Hundred
3. Rust en Vrede
4. The Greenhouse
5. Hartford House
6. Jordan Restaurant
7. Overture
8. Camphors at Vergelegen
9. The Tasting Room at Le Quartier Français
10. Pierneef à La Motte
Also revealed at last night’s ceremony were the four anonymous judges, who worked alongside Eat Out editor and chief judge Abigail Donnelly to determine the winners.
The judges for the 2013 awards were chef and lecturer Garth Stroebel; owner of Chefs Warehouse and Cooking School Liam Tomlin; and consultant and owner of Frankie Fenner Meat Merchants Andy Fenner.
Celebrity chef and TV host Jenny Morris judged the “Best of” portion of the awards.
All the winners…
Restaurant of the Year: The Test Kitchen – for the 2nd year running.
Eat Out S. Pellegrino Chef of the Year: David Higgs of Five Hundred.
Rising Star: Vanessa Marx of Dear Me Foodworld
Service Excellence: Rust en Vrede
Wine Service: Joakim Hansi Blackadder of Rust en Vrede
Best Bistro: The Leopard
Best Italian Restaurant: Burrata
Best Asian Restaurant: Kitima
Best Country-Style Restaurant: Towerbosch
The Eat Out Jacobsdal Best Steakhouse Award: Carne SA
The Eat Out Boschendal Style Award: The Pot Luck Club
TASTE Eat Out Bursary Award: Amanda Manyatshe
The Lannice Snyman Lifetime Achievement Award in association with Paarl Media: Michael Olivier
A huge congratulations to all the winners.