Emazulwini Restaurant in Cape Town has been named one of the best in the world by Food & Wine’s second annual Global Tastemakers Awards, ranking among the likes of those who delve into the culinary traditions of the region in which they’re located.
The criteria for making the list include the perfect blend of food with flavour, hospitality and personality. Another trend among the winners is an emphasis on local, farm-to-table, or foraged ingredients, natural wines and sustainability.
These are the 20 best restaurants in the world for 2024, according to Food & Wine:
- Mérito (Lima, Peru)
- Petermen (Sydney, Australia)
- SodaBottleOpenerWala (Mumbai, India)
- Cucina Villana (Ruvo di Puglia, Italy)
- Soil (Athens, Greece)
- Celele (Cartagena, Colombia)
- La Cocina de Humo (Oaxaca, Mexico)
- Indigo (Arequipa, Peru)
- Cultiva (Nairobi, Kenya)
- Emazulwini Restaurant (Cape Town, South Africa)
- L’Evo (Toyama, Japan)
- Teté Cocina de Barrio (Guadalajara, Mexico)
- Wana Yook (Bangkok, Thailand)
- Beba (Montreal, Canada)
- Dos Pebrots (Barcelona, Spain)
- Sait (Istanbul, Turkiye)
- Pizzeria I Masanielli (Caserta, Italy)
- Kotaro Shibuya (Tokyo, Japan)
- BiBi (London, UK)
- Note (Dublin, Ireland)
Chef Mmabatho Molefe first made waves in the culinary industry in 2020 when she opened Emazulwini. She was a guest chef on Carousel’s Open Kitchen in London last year and was named one of the World’s 50 Next Hospitality Pioneers.
The award-winning, modern Zulu-inspired restaurant celebrates Nguni cuisine and South African ingredients. Headed by Chef Molefe, Emazulwini started as a 10-seater restaurant with three chefs, a waiter and no sculler.
In 2022, Emazulwini took the title of African Restaurant of the Year at the fourth annual Luxe Restaurant Awards, and Chef Molefe was a guest judge on Masterchef SA.
Now, the restaurant name is still held in high esteem despite closing its doors in Makers Landing at the V&A Waterfront earlier this year. Chef Molefe announced the closing on her Instagram account on 10 February:
However, as reported by 2OceansVibe, Chef Molefe will emerge again. We’ll just have to keep an eye on the restaurant’s social media updates.
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Image: Instagram / @emazulwini_restaurant
