Bolt Food recently hosted the 2021 restaurant Awards in Cape Town in recognition of outstanding eateries most loved by Capetonians.
The awards seek to honour, appreciate and celebrate restaurants on the Bolt Food platform for their commitment to quality, provision of outstanding services, and professionalism – from service delivery, to the meals they serve.
Winners have also been chosen from 10 awards categories, including the top-rated restaurants as chosen by customers, affordable good food, best restaurants for a ‘fancy’ night in, and the restaurants with the most eco-friendly approach.
Bolt Food country manager in South Africa Taf Samushonga said more than 1 000 restaurants in Cape Town have joined the platform since it was first launched in the city in 2020.
Samushonga said that in this time, people across the Mother City have had the opportunity to enjoy their favourite restaurant dishes, and often discover new restaurants to try that may not have been on their radar before.
“The Bolt Food restaurant awards are granted for the culinary merits of partnering restaurants and in recognition of the critical role that they play in their communities: Bringing people together around good food, keeping people safe and away from crowded places during the pandemic, and offering exciting and intense culinary experiences all around Cape Town and its environs, to the comfort of people’s homes,” he said.
The full list of winners in each category of the awards for 2021 is as follows:
- Loved by Locals – top-rated restaurant according to Bolt Food users: RocoMamas, Rondebosch
- Hidden Gem – Cape Town’s most popular lesser-known eateries: Brocka, Rondebosch
- Midnight Munchies – most popular restaurants welcoming late-night orders: Food Inn
- Rising Star – a new restaurant that gained a huge following in a short amount of time: Primi, Cavendish
- Worth the Walk – most-pick-up orders: Acapulco Spur Steak Ranch,
- Never Gonna Give You Up - most repeated order: Simply Asia, Heritage Square
- Treat Yourself – most orders for the best high-end restaurant: Mai Thai Sushi,
- Best Value for Money – for affordable, good food: Snoekies, Belvedere
- Verified Vegan – most popular place to order vegan food: Prashad, Rondebosch
- Green Choice – the most eco-friendly or green approach to dishes, ingredients used, and initiatives: Kauai, Muizenberg.
Abdurahman Theunissen who is the operations and lead creative from Brocka in Rondebosch, which was voted the most popular restaurant in the ‘Hidden Gem’ category, said that the platform has helped them reach a wide variety of customers, which in turn has allowed them to welcome many new customers through their doors.
“We are seeing pick-up with our sit-down clientele and particularly students because we operate in a student hub area, which is amazing,” said Theunissen.
Ravi Naidu who is the franchisee of the Simply Asia restaurant said the food delivery platform helped boost their revenue, especially during the pandemic last year. They ran huge marketing campaigns, so people were getting great food at great prices. Naidu said it was a great win-win for everyone.