Luxe Awards: Meet SA’s best chef, Mmabatho Molefe

The hospitality industry’s best and top chefs, restaurants, hotels, bars and much more gathered on Tuesday evening to celebrate the best in South Africa.

Hosted at the Houghton Hotel, the inaugural Luxe 100 Best Awards ceremony was mc’d by media personality Shashi Naidoo as the industry famous faces such as Lazy Makoti, Siba Mtongana and Nicky van der Welt were in attendance.

Celebrating the best in hospitality 

The Luxe Awards were introduced to bring out and reflect the diversity in the local hospitality industry, honouring how far the industry has come. 

The main categories included the Best Bar, Best Chef, Best Restaurant, Best Hotel, Best Boutique, Best Game Lodge, Best Villa, Best Wine Farm, Best Eco-Lodge and Best Spa. 

As the list was extensive, the nominees were selected by industry experts and data was collected from customer reviews. 

ALSO READ: Vivari Hotel and Spa: Rise of medical tourism at your doorstep

From 100 nominees to the top 10 selected, those who made the final cut praised their team for their achievement. 

Notable top 10 members were popular celebrity Siba Mtongana listed amongst the best chefs in the country and her restaurant, Siba The Restaurant. The star admitted having her own eatery has been a challenge and now appreciates even more what restaurateurs do on a daily basis. 

Babylonstoren made three entries in the top 10, from the Best Wine Farm category, Best Spa and the biggie awarded the Best Hotel in South Africa. With a team of over 300, Babylonstoren’s employees are dedicated to excellence in every aspect. 

In the chef category, the finalists weren’t numbered, the list included Michelin star chef Jan Hendrik van der Westhuizen, Mtongana and David Higgs. 

When the announcement was made, Emazulwini Restaurant’s head chef and founder Mmabatho Molefe was named the Best Chef in South Africa. 

Humbled and taken aback, Molefe thanked the organisers and her team who have made Emazulwini one of the most coveted eateries in the country. The Cape Town restaurant is a modern Zulu-inspired restaurant, celebrating Nguni cuisine and South African ingredients. 

The mother city dominated on the night, with a majority of the restaurants listed in the best category coming from Cape Town.

It included Fyn, which came in second place, Belly of the Beast (third), La Colombe (fourth) and Joburg fine dining restaurant Les Creatfis (ninth) by head chef Wandile Mabaso.

The 2022 Luxe 100 Best category winners list:

1. Best Bar in South Africa: Zioux
2. Best Chef in South Africa: Mmabatho Molefe
3. Best Restaurant in South Africa: Salsify at the Roundhouse
4. Best Hotel in South Africa: Babylonstoren
5. Best Boutique Hotel in South Africa: Tintswalo Atlantic
6. Best Game Lodge in South Africa: Singita Boulders Lodge
7. Best Villa in South Africa: Sandcastle Luxury Villa
8. Best Wine Farm in South Africa: Delaire Graff Estate 
9. Best Eco Lodge in South Africa: Grootbos – Private Nature Reserve
10. Best Spa in South Africa: Vivari Spa