FACT Dubai Magazine hosted another awards ceremony for the fourth annual FACT Dining Awards Dubai, on November 22. The much-anticipated event, which heralds another successful year of operation for the publication in the city, was held online this year, marking the first virtual awards ceremony in the UAE. The who’s who of Dubai’s hospitality industry tuned in for the virtual online awards stream, attracting top GMs, F&B Directors, Chefs, Marketing and PR professionals, and selected bloggers and social media influencers. Embodying FACT’s down-to-earth and fun approach, the ceremony was a laid-back, fun and casual affair, as the winners from the 40 categories were announced by former radio host and DJ maestro Saif and Sound.
Speaking after the event, Edward Smith, at FACT M.E. FZ LLE, said: “Now in our fourth year, the FACT Dining Awards has become a highlight on the hospitality calendar in Dubai, and an event that we are very honoured to host. It’s our privilege to be able to recognise and award the efforts of all the excellent food and beverage outlets here in the city.
The dining scene in Dubai is so diverse and dynamic, with so many loved venues alongside exciting new ventures opening up all the time. As members of the media, it is our duty to give credit to the hundreds of venues that are such a big part of daily life here in Dubai,” he added.
“I would like to congratulate all the winners, and to every single nominee – you are the heartbeat of this great city and this is just our way of showing appreciation for your continued hard work. It’s incredible to see the mutual support shared and received between the media and the hospitality industry in Dubai, especially because there are just so many high-quality venues. The competition is tough, which only means that the standard of food gets better and better every year.
“We thank everyone who has helped us to commend the best in the culinary game, and we’ll be back next year with more to celebrate,” he said.
The FACT Dining Awards recognises excellence in the food and beverage industry, with winners awarded based on both public vote and critics’ opinion. Each category was given two awards, the BEST and the FAVOURITE. The latter is the result of a popular choice decided through online voting, and the former is the critics’ choice decided by an independent panel of food bloggers, the FACT editorial team and industry experts.
This year, a staggering 67,000 unique votes were cast online by diners in Dubai. Some of the standout accolades included Best Newcomer – Fine Dining which was awarded to Indochine in DIFC whilst the Favourite Newcomer – Fine Dining went to CE LA VI Dubai at Address Sky View. The Best Restaurant in Dubai for 2020 went to the ever-innovative Tresind and Tresind Studio at Voco Dubai. Other notable wins included five-star hotels like The Ritz-Carlton Dubai, JBR, Five The Palm, Le Méridien Dubai Hotel & Conference Centre, and JW Marriott Marquis Dubai to name but a few. A slew of independent and homegrown venues also walked away with accolades, namely Nola Social Eatery for Best Caribbean & North American, Alici on Bluewaters Island for Favourite Seafood.
Social media was abuzz too as Dubai’s dining elite shared their photos on facebook, twitter, instagram and snapchat, with the FACT team taking readers behind the scenes of the event on their insta story (@factmagazine).
