"This is truly a first, a coming together of industry experts and some of SA’s most respected food journalists and food lovers to decide who will be named as part of Eat Out’s top 500 restaurants in the country,” says Anelde Greeff, editor-in-chief for Eat Out.

The members of the panel are:

Aletta Lintvelt, food editor for Weg! and Go! Magazine; Alida Ryder, author of Simply Delicious; Anelde Greeff, editor-in-chief for Eat Out; Anna Montali, freelance food editor and writer; Bernadette le Roux, editor for Condé Nast House and Garden Gourmet; Bianca Coleman, freelance journalist; Brent Meersman, food columnist for Mail & Guardian; Bridget McCarney, managing director of New Media Publishing; Carianne Silwood, vice-principal at Silwood Cookery School; Cathy Marston, freelance writer and wine educator; Charlotte Pregnolato, freelance writer; Coenie Visser, freelance writer; Colette du Plessis, freelance writer; Corneil Muller, operational director at Urban Hotels; Diane de Beer, journalist at Pretoria News; Erwin Schnitzler , owner of Mont Rochelle; Graham Howe, wine and food editor at Habitat; Greg Landman, freelance writer; Gwynne Conlyn, freelance food and travel writer; Hennie Fisher, culinary arts lecturer at the University of Pretoria; Herman Lensing, food editor for Sarie; Horst Frehse, general manager of Twelve Apostles Hotel and Spa; Irna van Zyl, founder and executive director of New Media Publishing; Ishay Govender, freelance writer and recipe developer; Jacquie Myburgh, freelance journalist and media consultant; Jane Broughton, freelance writer; Janine Walker, freelance food critic and writer; Jeanne Callitz, deputy editor of My Tyd; John Psillos, founder and executive director of New Media Publishing; Josef Talotta, freelance writer; Kate Wilson, editor of Women’s Health; Kate Ziervogel, owner of South Coast Live; Katharine Jacobs, online editor for Eat Out; Kristia van Heerden, Johannesburg correspondent for Eat Out; Leila Saffarian, freelance food editor and writer; Linda Scarborough, copy editor for Eat Out; Lisa van Aswegen, freelance editor and writer; Marie-Lais Emond, freelance editor and writer; Miguel Chan, group sommelier at Tsogo Sun; Paul Duncan, head of design for homeware at Woolworths; Petro Lotz, owner of Appetito Catering and Cooking School; Priscilla Urquhart, PR and media manager for World Design Capital Cape Town 2014; Raphaella Frame-Tolmie, food editor and features writer for House and Leisure; Reinette Geldenhuis, Woolworths marketing: MasterChef project, hospitality, event and sponsorship manager and TASTE; Richard Holmes, freelance food and travel writer; Rupesh Kassen, freelance writer; Sam Woulidge, freelance writer and columnist for Woolworths TASTE; Sdu Gerasch, freelance writer; Stefania Johnson, creative strategist; and Tracy Gielink, freelance food and wine writer.

The panellists recently completed the process of rating restaurants that they had visited over the last twelve months on a variety of criteria including food (menu composition, seasonality, presentation and wine), service and ambience.

The Eat Out 500 is a power list of great restaurants across South Africa. The 500 restaurants with the highest aggregate scores will appear in the 16th annual issue of the Eat Out magazine. This revamped 2014 issue will be launched at the prestigious Eat Out DStv Food Network Restaurant Awards in Cape Town on Sunday, 10 November.

For more information, visit www.eatout.co.za or email [email protected]. Alternatively, visit the Facebook page or follow @eat_out on Twitter.