{"id":202833,"date":"2019-11-07T10:45:50","date_gmt":"2019-11-07T08:45:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chrisvonulmenstein.com\/blog\/?p=202833"},"modified":"2019-11-07T11:02:53","modified_gmt":"2019-11-07T09:02:53","slug":"tripadvisor-announces-2019-top-10-travellers-choice-awards-best-fine-dining-restaurants-in-south-africa-la-colombe-makes-a-meal-of-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chrisvonulmenstein.com\/blog\/cape-town\/tripadvisor-announces-2019-top-10-travellers-choice-awards-best-fine-dining-restaurants-in-south-africa-la-colombe-makes-a-meal-of-it\/","title":{"rendered":"TripAdvisor announces 2019 Top 10 Travellers\u2019 Choice Awards \u2018Best Fine Dining Restaurants\u2019 in South Africa, La Colombe makes a meal of it!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>It amuses me how much weight La Colombe places on the TripAdvisor Travellers\u2019 Choice Awards, clearly because it is the only awards ranking in which it comes first, and in which it beats its arch enemy The Test Kitchen, despite most serious restaurant diners knowing how questionable a TripAdvisor rating, and therefore this Award ranking, is! <\/p>\n

The 2019 TripAdvisor Travellers\u2019 Choice Top 10 List of \u2018Best Fine Dining Restaurants\u2019<\/i> in South Africa has just been announced: <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

    \n
  1.  La Colombe in Cape Town, and 12th on the World\u2019s Best Fine Dining Restaurants List  – Photograph <\/li>\n
  2. The Test Kitchen in Cape Town <\/li>\n
  3. De Grendel Restaurant in Cape Town <\/li>\n
  4. Le Bon Vivant in Franschhoek <\/li>\n
  5. Bel Punto in Umdloti<\/li>\n
  6. Rust en Vrede in Stellenbosch <\/li>\n
  7. Black Bamboo in Pretoria<\/li>\n
  8. Cavalli Restaurant in Stellenbosch<\/li>\n
  9.  Pigalle Restaurant in Cape Town <\/li>\n
  10. The Pot Luck Club <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Given the \u2018Best Fine Dining Restaurants\u2019 description of this ranking, you know there is something seriously suspect with these awards when: <\/p>\n

    #  it includes unknown restaurants in Pretoria and Umdloti, a dinner dance restaurant in Cape Town, and only three of the restaurants on this Top 10 List have been acknowledged by Eat Out, even if only in its Top 30 shortlist.  <\/p>\n

    #  it excludes our top Fine Dining restaurants The Restaurant at Waterkloof, Restaurant Mosaic at The Orient, Camphors at Vergelegen, Le Coin Fran\u00e7ais in Franschhoek, Grei at The Saxon, Greenhouse, FYN, and others. <\/p>\n

    Laughable is the response by La Colombe to its awards, in describing the TripAdvisor Travelers\u2019 (sic) Choice Awards 2019 as \u2018acclaimed<\/i>\u2019!  Chefs Scot Kirton and James Gaag are quoted (in poor English) as saying about the awards: \u2018The unique fact about this recognition, is that it is the \u2018people\u2019s choice\u2019 – an unsolicited review by diners from all over the world. Our team is absolutely delighted with this award\u2019!<\/i><\/p>\n

    An awards system with a Restaurant ranking which can be manipulated by reviews by friends and family, the criticism levelled against TripAdvisor reviews in general, has no credibility at all!<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Chris von Ulmenstein, WhaleTales Blog: www.chrisvonulmenstein.com\/blog Tel +27 082 55 11 323 Twitter:@Ulmenstein Facebook: Chris von Ulmenstein Instagram: @Chrissy_Ulmenstein<\/strong><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    It amuses me how much weight La Colombe places on the TripAdvisor Travellers\u2019 Choice Awards, clearly because it is the only awards ranking in which it comes first, and in which it beats its arch enemy The Test Kitchen, despite most serious restaurant diners knowing how questionable a TripAdvisor rating, and therefore this Award ranking, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[37142,3,124,266,20,32565],"tags":[19917,39131,39151,39132,17150,19893,32378,2196,39154,17513,37197,9367,39049,34130,39,1138,36218,39155,9497,3510,7451,39156,7569,39153,552,13,34,14128,32388,14495,7242,7518,7541,37516,1086,39152,1528],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t