Executive Chef: Bistro1682 @ Steenberg
Kerry, 32, joins the uber-trendy bistro-style darling of the dining world, continuing a career path that has seen her graduate from Silwood in 2002, join La Colombe as Chef de Partie in 2003, and appointed Sous Chef in 2004.
In 2006 she left with Franck Dangereux to help open the Foodbarn restaurant in Noordhoek, “a farmstall serving toasted sandwiches” when she arrived. “This didn't last long!” comments Kerry, “and the start of many changes which saw the Foodbarn Restaurant being born.”
Named after the year in which Steenberg was established, Bistro Sixteen82 first opened its doors in 2009. An innovative and interactive wine and food destination, the Bistro sits adja-cent to Steenberg’s winery, and spills into its surrounding indigenous gardens, with a ter-raced dining area leading to reflective water features, unfurling into views of the magnifi-cent stone mountains and expansive winelands.
The menu is constant evolution, keeping up with seasonal produce and featuring inventive dishes that compliment the locally sourced ingredients. Kerry is excited about the challenge, “I would like to create a happy and energetic working environment serving delicious food with passionate staff who love what they do. I can't wait to put my stamp on the menu and get to know the customers.”
Kerry grew up on a farm in Grahamstown, and her love of food was there as a little girl. “I love to bake, and at month end my father would pay all the staff wages. I would bake cakes and sell them to the workers. This little business continued when I went to boarding school and on the weekends I would come home and bake to sell to my class mates. By matric there wasn't a doubt in my mind that I wanted to go to chefs School and learn to cook!”
The Bistro received its first American Express Platinum Card Fine Dining Award in 2011, and has won the same award every year up to the most recent awards in 2014.
Internationally, Bistro Sixteen82 has been recognised in the list of 20 of the World’s Best Winery Restaurants by Canada’s renowned Wine Access magazine. Locally, listings includ-ed prominent mentions in Fleur du Cap’s Top 100 Places; Eat in Cape Town; and EAT OUT’s Best Bistros list.
