Chefs who Share 2016 Moet & Chandon pre-Dinner marries Mauritian and Cape Town cuisine in Johannesburg!

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Last night was the half-way mark of the 2016 six-day Chefs who Share – the ART of Giving charity event being held in Johannesburg, a pre-dinner to the Gala Dinner taking place in the Johannesburg City Hall on Saturday evening.

Last nght the pre-dinner was sponsored by Moët & Chandon, each of the five courses being paired with one of their champagnes. Brand ambassador Xolani Mancotywa introduced his brands to us. Hennessy Dom Pérignon Champagne Portfolio also sponsored the Dom Pérignon for Tuesday night’s dinner at the Four Seasons The Westcliff.

The dinner was an interesting ‘blend’ of the dishes by Table Bay hotel Chef Jocelyn Myers-Adams, who has become known for foraging at the sea in Mouille Point, and those by Chef Vincent Rodier of the LUX* Belle Mare from Mauritius, whose very French English accent we struggled to understand. Chef Jocelyn and MC Lentswe Bhengu helped to translate where they could, when the chefs did smoking demonstrations of oysters and Mauritian Marlin.

Prior to the smoking demonstration the first course was served, being house-cured ostrich with hibiscus and wild garlic mousse, Mauritian papaya jelly, cured beetroot, radish, compressed watermelon, and braised beetroot tartare. A broth was added to the dish after I had photographed it in a neighboring room, but the name of the broth was not listed in the menu. This dish was paired with Moët & Chandon Brut Rosé. It was difficult to get to photograph the dishes, despite numerous requests to be called when the dishes had been plated.

I sat at a table with co-founder of Chefs who Share, Florian Gast, and Chef Vineet Bhatia, who was one of two chefs who cooked at the Four Seasons hotel on Tuesday evening. I met him yesterday morning, and had about ten minutes to ask him some questions. He told me that he has twelve restaurants, one of them being a Michelin star restaurant in Geneva. He is the first Indian chef to have been awarded a Michelin star. He carries six cellphones for different time zones, to stay in touch with his restaurants, and visits each of them five to six times a year. I also sat next to Chef Andreas Schalek, the Executive Chef of Crystal Cruises. He is Austrian, and therefore we could converse in German. Also at our table was Ian Downie, from Imibala restaurant in Somerset West, who last year challenged Chefs who Share co-founder Barbara Lenhard to bring Chefs who Share to Johannesburg for the first time, a challenge which she accepted and which she made bigger and better by stretching it to six days!

The demonstration resulted in the oysters for our second dish being smoked, as well as the Mauritian Marlin which Chef Vincent had brought along in his luggage yesterday. One plate per table had the smoked Marlin as well as palm hearts, to share and try. The smoked oyster was served with ginger, and was presented on a stone, accompanied by Chef Jocelyn’s Cape Town foraging of suuring syrup, soutslaai, dune spinach, and seaweeds, with a Moët & Chandon granita, presented in an oyster shell. The pairing was with a Moët & Chandon NV Brut.

Barbara raved about the great reception which Chefs who Share has received in Johannesburg, and said that she loves the city and its energy, saying that she realizes that she is more of a ‘Johannesburg girl’. She thanked Sun International for its support of Chefs who Share, and its PR Manager Claudia Henkel in particular. She described the Maslow as ‘Sandton’s Urban Santuary’. MC Lentswe Bhengu described the event as one of ‘pairing, caring, and sharing’, and he thanked the Moët & Chandon Brand Ambassador Xolani for the contribution to the evening.

Waitrons came to each diner, and asked us what temperature we would like our main course meat served at, a question which rattled most of us, as we had never been asked a question like this before. The meat in the main course was sous vide blesbok loin, and scallop served with Mauritian Piment, served with Macadamia and Honey celeriac, and rainbow carrots. Not all of us could finish this dish, which was served with Moët & Chandon Nectar Impérial.

Chef Jocelyn said that Chefs who Share as well as Sun International are about creating memories, about giving back to the community, and encouraging the sustainability of growing produce. Lentswe added that it all begins with art, art on the plate as well as the auctioning of art for youth development. Three works of art which will be auctioned on Saturday evening were seen in the lobby of the hotel, ‘The Girl with the Umbrella’ by Marieke Prinsloo- Rowe, ‘Exhale’ by Adriaan Diedericks (right), and ‘Chihuahua’ by William Sweetlove.

The pre-dessert of Healey’s Farmhouse cheddar custard (above) was very rich, and most of us could not finish the dish, although the hand-made Müsli gave it a good crunch, and the air-dried apple slice added a good finish to the dish. The pairing was with Moët & Chandon Grande Cuvee Brut 2006.

Barbara reminded the diners that all chefs and sommeliers cooking in seven teams of two on Saturday evening are doing so without remuneration, being dedicated to the Chefs who Share cause. On Friday the chefs plus the finalists for the chefs who Share Young Chef of the Year will cook for 350 children with a disability, financed by donations received for the Veggie Box Initiave.

The last course was colourful, with a pelargonium (geranium) Blancmange, naartjie (mandarin) and lemon gels, strawberry dust, macerated strawberries, a meringue shard, and citrus soil. The pairing was with Moët & Chandon Nectar Impérial Rosé.

Chefs who Share – the Art of Giving, www.chefswhoshare.com Twitter: @ChefswhoShare