A hat trick of note! Winning not one, not two, but three top international awards, Restaurant Mosaic at the Orient has reinforced its spot as one of SA’s finest restaurants. Chef Chantel Dartnall, who heads up the Gauteng-based restaurant, was named the 2017 Chef of the Year for Africa and the Middle East in the Luxury Travel Guide Awards.

Then, in the same week, it was the restaurant’s exquisite cellar, overseen by Head Sommelier Germain Lehodey, that received recognition. At the 2017 World of Fine Wine World’s Best Wine Lists Awards, the restaurant received a top-tier three-star award along with the following accolades: Best Wine List Middle East & Africa, Best Champagne & Sparkling Wine List Middle East & Africa, Best Dessert & Fortified Wine List Middle East & Africa and Best by-the-Glass Wine List Middle East & Africa.

Last, but not least, Restaurant Mosaic was named Luxury Restaurant of the Year by Travel & Hospitality, which is described as an exclusive resource for the discerning traveller.

Dartnall was delighted with the recognition: “I am truly honoured to be bestowed with such a prestigious accolade. It is an even greater honour to be placed in the distinguished ranks of great international chefs who have previously won the award, many of whom have made important contributions to my life, so a huge thank you to the Luxury Travel Guide.”

The restaurant’s cellar is one of the most comprehensive in SA, with more than 75 000 bottles of wine under 5 500 different local and international labels. “It is a great privilege for me to work so closely with an incredibly talented head sommelier such as Germain Lehodey and being exposed on a daily basis to his wide knowledge of wine and the industry that I have grown to love so much. To be honoured by the World’s Best Wine Lists Awards again this year fills me with pride – in myself and the Mosaic-team for working so hard to make our wine list the best that we can,” says Moses Magwaza, sommelier at Restaurant Mosaic.