{"id":819333,"date":"2025-04-03T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-03T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=819333"},"modified":"2025-04-03T11:32:13","modified_gmt":"2025-04-03T09:32:13","slug":"the-man-behind-the-best-restaurant-in-south-africa-in-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/lifestyle\/819333\/the-man-behind-the-best-restaurant-in-south-africa-in-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"The man behind the best restaurant in South Africa in 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ryan Cole is the chef and co-owner of Salsify at the Roundhouse in Camps Bay, which was awarded Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant of the Year in 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cole was born on 9 February 1989 into a Cape Town fishing family, where he developed a love for the flavours and smells in the kitchen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In high school, each student did a shadow week, and he selected the hospitality industry, where he worked for three days in a hotel kitchen. He loved what he saw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI loved everything about food. It includes the endless creativity and the limitless discovery. It allows you to go as far as your mind allows you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cole attended the South African Chefs Academy, after which he embarked on an international career as a chef.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Between January and December 2010, he worked as a junior sous chef at Launceston Place in South Kensington in London.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In December 2010, he became a senior chef de partie at The Square, after which he served as a sous chef at La Trompette in London.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In September 2013, he returned to South Africa and worked as a senior sous chef at Pierneef al La Motte in Franschhoek.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2015, he joined the award-winning Cape Town restaurant The Test Kitchen as a sous chef and later became its head chef.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Test Kitchen, opened in 2010 by Luke Dale-Roberts, has won numerous awards, including being featured in the World’s 50 Best Restaurant Awards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was also named in the Elite Traveler Top 100 Restaurants and won the South African Restaurant of the Year award multiple times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2018, Dale-Roberts and Cole announced they planned to open a new restaurant at the historic Cape Town Roundhouse overlooking the Glen in Camps Bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The building dates back to 1786 when it served first as a guardhouse and then as a hunting lodge for the 19th-century Governor of the Cape, Sir Lord Charles Somerset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Dale-Roberts and Cole walked into the building for the first time, it was dilapidated and tired-looking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, after they cleaned the building and provided it with new d\u00e9cor and furnishings, it became \u201ca beautiful pearl\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The food at Salsify<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Salsify, which shares a name with a root vegetable and is known as the oyster plant because of its similar taste when cooked, has a strong focus on seafood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dale-Roberts and Cole highlighted that Salsify would not be another The Test Kitchen, and would offer a fine-dining experience without the snobbery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cole told Eatout that Salsify would push boundaries of flavour and technique and develop its own signature and style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy food is understated, balanced. I carefully consider the secondary ingredient rather than telling guests what to look for. This creates mystery in every course,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He explained that his food is minimalistic, true to the ingredients, and season-led. \u201cI call the food New Age South African,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He explained that Salsify offers what he believes South African food should be. \u201cIt has South African based ingredients with international influences,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t cook French or Asian food. I cook my version of what South African food should be,\u201d Cole said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He sources food from numerous passionate suppliers in the area, which helps to shape the seasonal menus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salsify at the Roundhouse quickly made a name for itself and started raking in the awards since its launch in October 2018.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It included being recognised as one of the best restaurants in South Africa by the Haute Grander Global Restaurant Awards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salsify at the Roundhouse the best restaurant in South Africa<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Salsify at the Roundhouse in Camps Bay was awarded Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant of the Year, achieving the highest score of any restaurant in South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2025 Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant Awards ceremony was held at the Baxter Theatre Centre in Cape Town on Monday, 31 March.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It brought together South Africa\u2019s leading chefs, restaurateurs, and industry figures for an evening celebrating South Africa\u2019s culinary excellence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As part of Eat Out\u2019s ongoing evolution, the 2025 judging process took a more comprehensive and transparent approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over eight months, eight anonymous, independent judges visited each shortlisted restaurant multiple times, ensuring a fair and all-encompassing assessment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis year\u2019s winners represent the pinnacle of South African dining,\u201d said Abigail Donnelly, Eat Out\u2019s Culinary Director.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe new judging process ensures that every star awarded truly reflects consistent excellence, from innovation on the plate to the overall guest experience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salsify won the Restaurant of the Year award because it offers a unique combination of excellent food, a great setting, and exceptional service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is a restaurant that balances the history of its unique setting, acknowledging its past while celebrating its immediate environment through hyper-local foraging,\u201d the judges said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis storytelling runs through its menu, complemented by attentive, knowledgeable and friendly service.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is a wonderful sense of generosity here, and guests feel special from the moment they arrive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inside Salsify at the Roundhouse<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Salsify at the Roundhouse in Camps Bay was awarded South Africa\u2019s Restaurant of the Year. Here is the man who made it the top restaurant in the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":819339,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9876],"tags":[22202,22200,22201,12893],"class_list":["post-819333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-luke-dale-roberts","tag-ryan-cole","tag-salsify-at-the-roundhouse","tag-the-test-kitchen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=819333"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819333\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":819365,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/819333\/revisions\/819365"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/819339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=819333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=819333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=819333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}