Rising to the occasion
All that was needed was a crackling fire to complete the picture at Tuesday nights’ FNB KwaZulu-Natal Top Business Portfolio Awards held at the Southern Sun Elangeni Hotel.
Women in faux fur stoles and men in suits sipped on sherry and mingled outside the Great Illanga room, which was splendid in black and white.
Inside the intimate venue topiary narrowed the stage, while on tables silver and crystal candelabras added warmth and reflected light on to round-mirrowed place settings and black ceramic protea-shaped vessels.
The venue, decorated by Laura Kidd from Lifestyle Bizarre, oozed class.
Alan Khan was an apt programme director.
Speaker Logie Naidoo did the welcome in absence of deputy mayor Nomvuso Shabalala, followed by Preggie Pillay, provincial head of FNB in KZN and Mike Mabuyakhulu, the MEC for economic development and tourism.
Premier Zweli Mkhize gave the main address.
Dinner was brought forward, due to an hour’s delay at the start of the function, and I’m sure guests appreciated tucking into their meals before the awards ceremony.
The food was clearly a winner â€" more than 300 guests enjoyed savoury mushrooms phyllo pasty parcels for starters and braised rack of Karoo lamb with vegetables for mains.
Dessert included pavlova and baked pear tart.
The only gripe I had with the evening was the bizarre (and inconsistent) request from the premier’s office that guests should stand as MEC’s walked in.  Is that protocol?
Among those standing were Cyril Gumede, Umgeni Water; Nicole East, Suncoast; Colin Naidoo, Airports Company South Africa; Colin Snyman, PFK Electronics; and Bongani Gumede, Tongaat Hulett.
The awards are a platform to celebrate the successful companies and organisations that operate and contribute to the sustained economic growth of KZN.
More than 360 brands contested for the top 10 positions.
The Sharks won the most votes (guests all received tickets to this weekend’s match).  They were followed by East Coast Radio in second place and Dusi title sponsors The Unlimited in third.