2020 FACT Dining Awards: WINNERS

The sixth annual FACT Dining Awards ceremony took place on Sunday, 22nd November live from Eclipse Studios in what was the first virtual awards ceremony in the UAE.

More than 55,000 unique online votes were cast by the public in Abu Dhabi and hundreds of guests tuned into the line stream to enjoy a fun yet socially distanced awards ceremony to celebrate the very best of the food and beverage industry in Abu Dhabi.

The sixth year heralds another successful year of operation for Fact Magazine in the UAE capital. The who’s who of Abu Dhabi’s hospitality industry tuned in for the virtual online awards stream, attracting top GMs, F&B Directors, Chefs, Marketing and PR professionals, and selected Abu Dhabi bloggers and social media influencers. Embodying FACT’s down-to-earth and fun approach, the ceremony was a laid-back, fun and casual affair, presented by the one and only DJ Saif. The popular DJ and MC announced all 53 winners in 26 categories to roaring cheers.

Speaking after the event, Edward Smith, Publishing Director at FACT M.E. FZ LLE, said: “I can hardly believe that we are now in our sixth year with the FACT Dining Awards. The city’s food sector has grown rapidly and there are so many great new venues and well-established classics too, who we love to reward at the ceremony, which has become a highlight on the hospitality calendar in Abu Dhabi,” he added. “We are incredibly honoured to have been able to host another successful event that has well and truly become the authority on recognising the efforts of all the excellent food and beverage outlets in Abu Dhabi.

“Despite a shift to an online ceremony, the turn out this year was one of the best we’ve had in the whole region” he continued. “I would like to congratulate all the nominees and winners, and also give a huge shout out to all of our sponsors – Abu Dhabi Night, Cheers, Eclipse PSAV, Häagen-Dazs, Hayley Alexander Events, Grand Hyatt Abu Dhabi Hotel & Residences Emirates Pearl, and Tish Tash – without you all, this wouldn’t be possible – so keep doing what you do best and we’ll be back next year with even more surprises and venues to commend.”

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 critic’s choice decided by an independent panel of food bloggers, the FACT editorial team and industry experts in Abu Dhabi.

Some of the standout accolades included Best Newcomer which was awarded to one of the most talked about new French restaurants in the city – La Salle at Saadiyat Beach Club, whilst the Favourite Newcomer went to Garage at W Abu Dhabi . Best restaurant in Abu Dhabi for 2020 went to Zuma once more. Other notable wins included five-star hotels like The St. Regis Abu Dhabi, Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi at Al Maryah Island, The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal, Beach Rotana Abu Dhabi, InterContinental Abu Dhabi, Rosewood Abu Dhabi and many more.

Social media was abuzz too as Abu Dhabi’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).

This month also saw the fourth annual FACT Dining Awards take place in Dubai, with hundreds of venues awarded for excellence over the years.