What are the Luxe Restaurant Awards?
Founded by Chad Fourie of The Hospitality Counsel — a privately-owned hospitality management consulting firm — the annual Luxe Awards ceremony was held recently at a Bedfordview rooftop restaurant, where the who’s who of South Africa’s hospitality industry gathered.
Luxe employs a panel of inspectors who, according to Fourie, follow a system akin to the Michelin Guide: The inspectors remain anonymous, restaurants aren’t charged to be included and the emphasis is on the food and other elements, such as décor and service. Several visits are made to each venue and Luxe stars are awarded — on a scale of one to three — to the restaurants based on the rating by the inspectors.
Meet five of the winners who caught our eye:
CANDICE PHILIP
CHEF OF THE YEAR
Cyra, Houghton, Johannesburg, Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year
Lifestyle food editor Hilary Biller says: For too many years, the superbly talented Philip has flown under the radar of South African restaurant awards — missing the big ones — and this award and being named as Chef of the Year is so on the button. The Cyra tasting menu reflects her precision and the creativity in her craft, and her plates are well-considered pieces of artwork — and delicious too. We applaud you, chef Candice.
Chef Philip’s delight at being named Chef of the Year is palpable. She described the award as a “momentous personal achievement that recognises the hard work that myself and the team put together” at Cyra, the fine dining restaurant situated in The Houghton Hotel that opened in the last quarter of 2024.
“It's the passion and dedication that so many women in this industry bring to the table every day,” she said. Working in an industry dominated by men has never deterred me; rather, it has fuelled my determination to create something exceptional.”
With more than 23 years' experience, Candice has worked in top restaurants in Johannesburg under legendary chefs such as David Higgs and Luke Dale Roberts. Philip is well known for pushing boundaries, using her unique skill of blending simplicity with sophistication to create dishes of style, grace and elegance.
Cyra was named as the Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year, an inspiring achievement in a crowded and highly-competitive industry.
“At Cyra restaurant, we’re not just serving food, we’re creating memories,” said the chef.
AMORI BURGER, 39
CULINARY RISING STAR AWARD
Upper Union, Gardens, Cape Town, Contemporary Restaurant of the Year
Hilary Biller says: I miss the opportunity of having chef Amori’s talent in my hood; she was the chef behind the popular Johannesburg restaurant based in Linden, Van Der Linde, which closed a couple of years ago. Joburg’s loss was Cape Town’s gain, where chef Amori is hitting the high notes at the Upper Union Restaurant in Gardens, which offers a double whammy — her creative and quirky take on delectable food, and superb views of the Mother City. I love it.
“I'm very blessed to gain this recognition for myself, the restaurant, and the team,” said Burger over the phone when I spoke to her recently. “My mother, who accompanied me to the awards ceremony, did have a quiet giggle about the 'rising star' bit as I'm turning 40 in a couple of weeks and have been working in the industry for 18 years,” she said, assuring me this hadn’t detracted in any way from the prestige of receiving this award. She’s absolutely delighted with the win.
Burger’s creativity in the kitchen has come a long way. “I’ve always known I’ve wanted to cook since I was 13 years old. I come from a family of GOOD cooks,” she said. “In high school my very best thing was to cook for my friends — and to this day they say I make the very best lasagne.”
Chef Burger talks fondly about her team: “Awards are a team effort and on reflection winning these awards means that our restaurant remains relevant in a very crowded environment, particularly in Cape Town,” she said, adding that Upper Union restaurant was no “one-hit wonder”.
I asked if there was a kitchen gadget that had accompanied her on her 18-year journey as a chef. “My magic tool, it comes with me wherever I go,” she said without hesitation, explaining that a Global spatula was given to her by the chef on her first job. “It may have seen better days, but it has great sentimental value and can undertake almost any job in the kitchen.”
CARLA SCHULZE, 28
Culinary Innovation Award — Salon, Cape Town — Three Star Restaurant Award
Salonct.co.za
Hilary Biller says: The young executive chef is on the road to a sparkling career in the industry and I feel sure this is the first of many awards. Well known for her flair and creativity in restaurant kitchens, she graduated from the prestigious Jackie Cameron School of Food & Wine in KwaZulu-Natal. Cameron described Schultz as “an extraordinary talent who is making waves as the executive chef at Salon.”
Johannesburg-born Schulze kicked off her career by studying hotel management in Switzerland. A protégé of Luke Dale-Roberts — the owner of Salon and a list of famed restaurants — Schulze’s first job was at his famous Test Kitchen restaurant, now closed. She describes Roberts as “a huge influence” on her career.
Schulze says the award-winning Salon restaurant is constantly refreshing its 10-course tasting menu, and together with Dale-Roberts — who works in the restaurant twice a week — their creativity knows no bounds. She describes a recent collab that saw them creating a French tarte Tatin featuring organic fresh figs grown in the Cape, combined with seasonal tomatoes. My mouth was watering. “It might sound like a strange combo but it really works ... the ingredients speak for themselves,” says Schulze
And her celebratory meal? No surprise, her choice would be a fine dining meal with family at either Azure restaurant in Camps Bay or Coy at the V&A Waterfront. And at home? “I would make a beef Wellington with a café au lait sauce I'd pick up from the Pot Luck Club restaurant on the way home. Nothing beats that,” she says.
CAITLIN CROCKART, 23
Mixology Rising Star Award
Sin + Tax, Rosebank Johannesburg, Bar of the Year
Hilary Biller says: Watch this space as Crockart is making waves, big ones, in an industry that has been traditionally the preserve of men. The hard working mixologist is on the path to owning her own bar, a revolutionary space she says will be a safe space, particularly for women.
I meet up with this funky mixologist at Benchwarmers Sports Bar on busy Jan Smuts Avenue in Rosebank. It's the place where she worked while studying and is forever grateful to “Shaggy” who taught her the ropes in mixology.
Small in stature, dressed in black with eye-catching bright pink streaks in her hair, the qualified architect chatted about the turnaround in her career choice: from drawing up plans — too regimental she said — to designing cocktails. At 24 she's already won a couple of mixology competitions “but nothing as grand as this recent award, I'm holding so much gratitude,” she said of her win.
She has moved next door to the sports bar and is a mixologist at Sin + Tax and loving every minute. She is the only woman on the team, for now, and in awe of the founder of the award-winning bar, Julian Short. She is not afraid of hard work or the long hours in the industry, which constantly excites her.
In the future she'd like to own her own bar. She's playing with fresh flavours at the moment, think Mezcal tequila — smoky fresh earth heavenly water, her description — gin and fresh citrus. Her “lucky charm” is a beautiful gold penknife she hangs on her side, “the most useful thing I've ever had,” she said.
ZOLA NENE, 41
Culinary Media Personality of the Year
Hilary Biller says: What not to love about this fabulous chef — she's warm, friendly with the widest smile in the business. Nene graces our TV screens in cooking shows with aplomb, is the author of a couple of great award-winning cookbooks and if you ever need her autograph she's the most engaging celeb in South Africa.
When I started my chef career it was undeniably a male dominated industry, so [I decided] to study culinary arts even though I had extensive overseas industry experience — I needed the formal qualification in my back pocket to demand respect in a traditional male arena in the kitchen.
I'm glad to see more women enter and excel in the fold, particularly in the food media field where I get to share my love for food — the reason I wanted to be a chef — on a large scale and on some incredible platforms.
Winning awards is a huge boost of confidence and pat on the back. And an honour to be nominated among your peers in the industry and get the opportunity to celebrate each other. I’m very grateful and chuffed at winning this award.
When I got home after the Luxe Awards, my first stop was my parents home where my mom had cooked a celebratory meal — lamb curry, rice, butternut and beetroot — all the foods I enjoy as I love simple home-cooked comforting meals, so that was the perfect celebratory meal for me.
As for a celebratory drink, I’m now fixated on lychee martinis. I even made my own preserved lychees so I can shake a cocktail up at home whenever the craving hits.
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