I cook from my heart. I know no other way. My greatest joy is seeing people enjoy a good meal, with good friends. Laughter lines these kitchen walls.
My journey to food
from De Waterkant
to Riebeek Kasteel
My journey into food and wine probably already had its origins in my life as a performing artists where I started my career. There are so many similarities between the stage and the food industry: the wonderful creative energy, the intense discipline and the one opportunity to get it right!
I arrived in the Cape twelve years ago and found myself working in a Wine Bar in De Waterkant. A whole world of food and wine started unfolding in front of me and I fell hopelessly in love with the craft in all its facets.
After spending some time in Cape Town managing restaurants my path led me to Riebeek Kasteel where I met the formidable Anton Espost and his wife Cecile. They had a dream to establish a peasant wine bar and eatery and so ‘Bar Bar Black Sheep’ was born. The memory of this time lies like a glimmering jewel in my mind.
We cooked and prepared food of love locally sourced, much of it grown by ourselves and served in the simplest and most flavoursome combinations. The biggest lesson learned was that simple and honest food and wine will always have the best results.
“Life is a combination of magic and pasta”
– Frederico Fellini
“Everything you see, I owe to spaghetti!”
– Sophia Loren
The kokkedoor
journey cooking
up a storm
After five years in Riebeek Kasteel I took so many valuable lessons from this time in my life and, rich in the experience of cooking heritage food with love, entered kykNET’s reality cooking competition Kokkedoor. This proved to be an experience of a life time and with my cooking partner Tiaan we won the competition.
Many good things flowed from this. I got to design and style my very first cook book for the Kokkedoor edition and together the two of us started cooking up a storm through South Africa. Through Makietie, a second series, I got to know the brand managers from KWV and got to be appointed as the Brand Ambassador for the KWV marketing campaign for the next three years. So many wonderful opportunities and doors have opened up for me and I found myself living a truly blessed life.