are you keen to come back to Cape
Town?” I said “Of course!” Chef Luke
is one of the best chefs in the world!
I worked at The Pot Luck Club, then
The Shortmarket Club, and now
The Commissary is happening.
At The Commissary, we’re serving
cool food with aggressive, intense
flavours. It’s streetfood that went
to private school. To put a dish on the
menu at The Test Kitchen it goes through
so much nipping and tucking, but with The
Commissary we have a space to try things.
My favourite dish is one from The
Shortmarket Club, developed
by Wesley [Randles – head chef
of The Shortmarket Club, who
started The Commissary with
Simon Widdison]. Wesley’s from
Durban, so it’s octopus, with atchar, and
Durban spice – and we’ve taken that
dish and put it on a bun to make a slider.
You’ve got crunchiness, the tanginess of
so dope because it was food made in
the township with a cheffy spin on it.One day, God willing, when I have
my own restaurant, my vision is
to take African cuisine up a level.
On Kasi-licious, I did a sheep’s head
terrine, so I’d like to do that one day.The one thing I’d like to change
is chefs ruling with an iron fist.
I was a naughty kid, but I’ve also seen
kids being broken. Now, when I see
people get up to mischief, I’m like, “Guys,
I used to be that kid. Friday, you’re sick,
really?” It’s weird shouting at guys to be
on time. But I believe you bring out the
best in people by being nice to them.The best part of my job is when
you see someone cut into their
meal and you see that nod.
It makes me breathless, man.The Commissary, 88 Shortmarket St, Cape Townthe atchar ... We also have Korean-fried
chicken wings. They have this tapioca
batter that looks pretty weird, but it’s
really, really delicious.I’ve been very blessed – I had
two seasons of my TV show,
Kasi-licious nominated for a
SAFTA. I had to have elocution lessons,
learn to look at cameras, not to drop
F-bombs. The TV dream is still there, but
it made me realise I love being in the
kitchen. I don’t want people to think I’m
this kid who went to private school and
just got given this. I want to earn my
stripes. So I’ve tried to work in the
best restaurants. But Kasi-licious was“One day, God willing,
when I have my own
restaurant, my vision
is to take African
cuisine up a level”TABLE TALK