Eleven executive chefs… eleven gourmet tasters representing the diversity of South Africa’s cuisines, the colourful vibrancy of culinary influences, and a festive feast for a southern hemisphere country characterised by a rainbow nation.
In a celebration of South African life, Tsogo Sun presented an 11-course tasting menu to a discerning table of foodie influencers in Cape Town, with nine of its executive chefs flying in for the day to join two of the group’s Cape Town chefs in showcasing their diverse talents and personalities at a Festive Feast for Christmas in July.
“Tsogo Sun is proud to have some of the country’s most talented, skilled and just plain fascinating chefs in its kitchen brigades,” says Priya Naidoo, General Manager, Group Communications for Tsogo Sun. “The eleven chefs who presented signature dishes from their respective restaurants’ festive season menus represent the finest talent within the group, and the diversity of offerings within our restaurant brands.”
The Festive Feast, hosted by Tsogo Sun at Southern Sun The Cullinan, showcased the culinary talents of:
Garth Shnier of San at Sandton Sun – a multiple international gold, silver and bronze medal-winning chef
Alfred Henry of Riempies at Southern Sun Cape Sun – a chocolatier by trade, turned executive chef
Deena Naidoo of Aarya at SunSquare Montecasino – the first winner of MasterChef SA
Henrico Grobbelaar of Stella at Southern Sun The Cullinan – the captain of South Africa’s National Culinary Team
Jade Sullaphen of Punchinello’s at Southern Sun Montecasino – a chef who has cooked for presidential dinners and delegations
Clinton Bonhomme of The Grill Jichana at Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani – the only chef in SA to be invited three times to cook for the Table of Peace and Unity
Shaun Munro of Lingela at Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani – the chef in charge of nine food & beverage outlets
Tony Kocke of The Sugar Club at the Beverly Hills – former owner of a Michelin-star restaurant in the UK
Vaughan Assam of Back o’ the Moon at Gold Reef City – the youngest-ever executive chef of the Blue Train
Gareth Jordaan of Lucé at Southern Sun Hyde Park – opening sous chef for the Cipriani Restaurant and Yacht Club in Abu Dhabi
Kenneth Ngubane of Jenda at Montecasino – a chef who trained a MasterChef judge
Says Kevin Page, Food & Beverage Director of Tsogo Sun, “Food and beverage is a core competency at Tsogo Sun and is positioned at the forefront of the group’s gaming and hotel hospitality delivery, with over 80 restaurants and food outlets across the group all with a strong focus on world-class quality and memorable culinary experiences.
“We’re extremely proud of how far Tsogo Sun has come over the last few years with the overall quality of its food and beverage offering. We have assumed custodianship of the food & beverage business within the group and we are ensuring that it is a critical delivery factor in the overall hospitality environment; after all, it employs a third of our workforce. Food and beverage is part and parcel of being hospitable, and our F&B offering is all about ensuring excellent, honest and memorable delivery of food and beverage.”
The dishes on the 11-course menu served by the chefs at the Tsogo Sun Festive Feast will all be available on the respective festive menus of the restaurants represented by the 11 chefs:
Lingela’s Festive Salmon: Home-cured beetroot infused salmon gravalax
By Shaun Munro of Lingela at Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani
Midlands duck breast: Cinnamon infused red cabbage dumpling, parsnip mousse, Morello cherry compote natural duck jus
By Tony Kocke of Sugar Beach at the Beverly Hills
Cured fillet of beef & gammon served with mushroom duxelle puree, red cherry filled with cream cheese, water chestnut crumble and balsamic beetroot
By Jade Sullaphen of Punchinello’s at Southern Sun Montecasino
Festive smoked mushroom potage
By Garth Shnier of San at Sandton Sun
Spicy seafood hotpot: Prawn, mussel, calamari and salmon in a rich tomato, chilli, garlic, hint of cream and herb sauce
By Deena Naidoo of Aarya at SunSquare Montecasino
Sous vide chicken supreme, creamed goats cheese, putnesca stuffing, crispy leek and sour cherry
By Gareth Jordaan of Lucé at Southern Sun Hyde Park
Pan fried rack of lamb served with citrus glazed baby carrots, pea puree and fondant potatoes, napped with rich rosemary jus
By Kenneth Ngubane of Jenda at Montecasino
Exotic Mushroom Ravioli with chunky Napolitana or Basil Pesto
By Vaughn Assam of Back ‘O The Moon at Gold Reef City
Surfing Santa’s Board: Festive sweet treats from The Grill Jichana
By Clinton Bonhomme of The Grill Jichana at Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani
White chocolate nougat mousse, praline, cinnamon & white chocolate cremo, Malay spiced eggnog anglaise, cherry gel
By Alfred Henry of Southern Sun Cape Sun
Caramelised bananas, banana milk, banana bacon, macadamia, salted toffee ice cream
By Henrico Grobbelaar of Stella at Southern Sun The Cullinan
For reservation contact details go to www.tsogosun.com. Tsogo Sun’s portfolio includes over 90 hotels and 14 casino and entertainment destinations throughout South Africa, Africa, the Seychelles and Abu Dhabi. For further information, visit tsogosun.com, follow on Twitter and Instagram @TsogoSun or like on Facebook /TsogoSun.