At the recent Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant Awards where the 2026 Eat Out star restaurants were announced, Eat Out Culinary Director, Abigail Donnelly made a moving and heartfelt speech. We wanted to share her words with the wider audience – a candid reflection filled with insights and personal anecdotes that reveal her passion and dedication for discovering South Africa’s best restaurants.

“Good evening and welcome to the very best of our industry. Tonight is about excellence. It is about the pursuit of perfection, served one plate at a time. As the lights dim and anticipation rises, prepare yourselves for stories of brilliance and for the celebration of those who turn meals into memories, where passion is plated and greatness is served. 

Tonight, we celebrate our heroes: the chefs, the restaurants and the kitchen teams, the sommeliers and waitrons. The brave souls who work days, nights, weekends and holidays just so the rest of us can argue whether the sauce is seasoned enough, or accommodate diners’ demanding requests: “Can I have gluten-free, lactose-free, seed-free, sugar-free, meat-free… but still full of flavour?” And somehow, you make it happen. 

Tonight, we’re celebrating the magic, the creativity and the chaos – where a tray of dropped Riedel glasses is just part of the ambience. We honour the community and the relationships with your suppliers. This collaboration transforms food from a quality product into a shared story of people, place and perfection. A sudden surplus of heirloom tomatoes, a delivery of perilla leaves from the neighbourhood farm and just-caught yellowtail from local fishermen inspires a new dish, an emotional connection and a sense of place. 

Get ready for a night of well-deserved acclaim, great company and, hopefully, no one asking to split the bill 10 ways! 

I had the incredible privilege of tasting some of the finest dishes, each one memorable and worthy of recognition. Every dish tells a story, and tonight I am excited to share some of the ones that stood out and have stayed with me long after the last bite… 

1. The lighting softens in the gorgeous, innovative cellar at La Colombe, where Vin de Constance is paired secretly with the finest cheese course.It’s not your ordinary cheese trolley – it’s allreally just a surprise.

2. Let’s not forget Vanessa’s chicken zucchini, where homage is paid to an incredible supplier (Vanessa Collocott), exquisitely prepared by The LivingRoom’s Johannes Richter: a basket of crumbed chicken nugget rillette, apricot jam and offal sugo.

3. A tartare is always about restraint; nothing is hidden, nothing is overworked. It’s about clarity and confidence. Hand-cut venison, capers for brightness and a raw egg yolk. As many of you know, not my favourite, but this time it worked. It’s pretty much what chef Luke Wonnacott demands on the plate at Table Seven.

4. A shot of local agave, smoke, a tiny quarter of frozen lime – we cleansed our palates. So fresh and clean and pure. This is Pier.

5. I dived straight into Bokaap fish with kimchi curry leaf, an expression of skill: skin crisp and slightly blistered. This was Embarc‘s daily catch.

6. A caramelised T-bone, almost charred in places – that crust is everything. Inside, blushing pink, juicy and buttery. Tyler‘s does it all.

7. Tiny sea organisms – briny, salty plankton, visually striking – folded through a sublime risotto, dished up at Amura.

8. Dreams are made from this standout bread course. Of course, at Beau Constantia it goes something like this: steaming polenta bread, confit black garlic, Calvados butter dipped in curry leaf dust, shavings of frozen snoek.

9. An exceptional vegetarian dish at Ouzeri. The humble cabbage, this time not so humble – a melt-in-the-mouth, smoky roasted wedge, smothered in pecorino cream with ever-so-thin shavings of crunchy kohlrabi.
10. And finally, atNevermind – the freshest, perfect oyster, glossy and plump, nestled in a spicy, just-right nam jim. 

And of course, there were a whole lot more! 

We are into our second year of the new way of Eat Out judging. A nationwide panel of scouts; qualified chefs, sommeliers, food editors and key industry professionals – scour South Africa for culinary excellence. Restaurants are also able to self-nominate. Each shortlisted restaurant is visited by all the judges, both off-peak and in season. Each judge scores the restaurant separately, without conferring or collaboration. Once the scores are submitted, the results are audited and all restaurants receive their aggregated scorecards, offering transparency into the evaluation. 

To ensure complete objectivity, Eat Out covers the cost of all meals, travel and accommodation, which allows for unbiased evaluations and investment in the South African restaurant industry. 

To my fellow judges: thank you for understanding flavour, balance and technique, and for the ability to eat four desserts in a row without making eye contact with your gastroenterologist. To the plates of food so beautifully plated we were afraid to eat them (don’t worry, we got over that quickly!) We also learnt how to discreetly loosen our belts under the table. 

From us judges to all the nominees: thank you for the ability to make us forget that we were trying to eat healthily this week. And to the servers who smile even when someone says: “I’ll just have water with lemon, no cucumber, but not too much ice.” 

Building on more than two decades of championing South African restaurants through its prestigious awards, Eat Out is now expanding its mission to celebrate a different kind of excellence. This year we are launching Eat Out Neighbourhood Gems which focuses entirely on the places where industry professionals love to eat. 

This won’t just be another dining guide – the nominations are chef-driven recognition. You’ll find the late-night pizza spots, the best bunny chow joints, car-wash shisanyamas and corner bakeries where traditional recipes and family-run places are recognised. These are establishments where recipes carry family histories, where consistency trumps trends, and places utterly committed to their community. 

The beauty lies in the democracy of good food – excellence isn’t only confined to expensive locations or trendy neighbourhoods. Some of South Africa’s most remarkable food happens in spaces where passion for food takes precedence over everything else. 

Enjoy tonight and congratulations to our incredible restaurants!”