2021 FACT Dining Awards: WINNERS

The seventh annual FACT Dining Awards ceremony took place on Wednesday, 10th November live from The Art Lounge at Louvre Abu Dhabi. 57 awards were given out across 29 categories covering more than 150 nominees and 55,000 unique online votes were cast by the public in Abu Dhabi.

This year Abu Dhabi’s food and beverage industry turned out to celebrate the very best of the food and beverage industry in Abu Dhabi. 57 awards were given out across 29 categories which covered over 150 hotel and independent restaurants and bars. Around 200 guests enjoyed a sociable evening of delicious canapés and free flowing drinks at The Art Lounge at Louve Abu Dhabi.

The seventh year heralds another successful year of operation for Fact Magazine in the UAE capital. The who’s who of Abu Dhabi’s hospitality industry turned out for the awards, attracting top GMs, F&B Directors, Chefs, Marketing and PR professionals, and selected 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 57 awards across 29 categories 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 seventh 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, 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.

“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, Art Lounge, and Chef’s 4 The Planet – 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 restaurants in the city – West Bay Lounge at Radisson Blu Hotel & Resort, Abu Dhabi Corniche, whilst the Favourite Newcomer went to Mazaj Al Bahr at Fairmont Bab Al Bahr . Best restaurant in Abu Dhabi for 2021 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, 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 (@factmagazines).

This month will also see the fifth annual FACT Dining Awards take place in Dubai, with hundreds of venues expected to be awarded for excellence over the years.

FACT Dining Awards is part of a wider initiative by FACT M.E. with popular dining awards taking place in Bahrain, Dubai and Qatar.