Highlights from the second annual SA Chef Conference & Expo, from local flavours to global trends

Chefs, caterers and culinary enthusiasts gathered in Johannesburg in August for the second annual SA Chef Conference & Expo. The conference was held at Capital Empire in Sandton, Johannesburg. Attendees included sponsors, leading suppliers, exhibitors and speakers who gathered at the hotel for two days. Individuals got a glimpse of some culinary conversations from AI to crafting cuisine from some of the leading chefs and partners in South Africa.

On the way to the venue in Sandton, I had a full circle culinary moment. My first event that I attended in South Africa was the Africa Food Show in Cape Town. The event showcased different exhibitors and conversations surrounding Africa’s food and beverage sector merging local talent with global trends. 

I had the fortunate opportunity to attend the event through an invitation by food security expert and entrepreneur, Miles Kubheka. Kubheka is the founder of Wakanda Food Accelerator, an independent business that supports local “foodpreneurs” with their start-ups to assist their production to distribution process. When I saw the chef line-up, I was pleasantly surprised to see the familiar visionary on the list, but I wasn’t shocked either– this was right up his alley. 

Some other familiar faces were there such as Vusi Ndlovu and Absie Pantshwa, co-founders of EDGE X VUE, a pop-up-style restaurant aiming to reimagine traditional African cuisine with fine dining. I first enjoyed a meal in Cape Town prepared by Ndlovu and his team back in June. The Senegalese jollof rice and kingklip remains one of my favourite dishes that I tried in South Africa. Other names also included chefs and experts that Tony spoke so highly of such as Wandile Mabaso, Johannes Richter and Dr Anna Trapido. The line-up was just a taste of the high quality chefs attending and impactful conversations that would be had. 

As a courtesy of the SA Chef Conference, I had the opportunity to attend it on Tony’s behalf. After signing in, the world is your oyster. You could have either attended the panel discussions or checked out the exhibitions. I decided to skim the exhibitions to scope out the displays before sitting in on the first discussion called “Balancing Act”. The talk touched upon creativity, profitability, sustainability and customer satisfaction with some of South Africa’s top chefs such as Bertus Basson, the keynote speaker, Ryan Cole, Johannes Richter and Absie Pantshwa. The MC was Katlego Mlambo, a MasterChef judge and digital creator, and the welcome address was by Lance Gibbons, founder and publishing editor. 

The conversation included how South African chefs can source quality ingredients that are also indigenous to enhance traditional dishes while also remaining authentic and uplifting the local economy. 

“Remember when we cook with South African ingredients we keep the money in South Africa,” said Basson.

On the conversation of menu development and customer satisfaction, Pantshwa, who oversees operations to support chefs at Edge Africa, believes that the “balancing act” involves looking at the demographic of diners, calling it a “delicate dance between the locals and the internationals” to curate a menu both indigenous to natives but appetising to tourists without altering the essence of a traditional dish.

Johannes Richter, the award-winning executive chef at TheLivingRoom at Summerhill Guest Estate in KwaZulu-Natal, believes that South African cuisine introduces tourists to the strength of the “Rainbow Nation”.

“Our strength is diversity and hospitality,” said Richter.

After the educational panel there was a brief intermission. I thought I would finally check out the exhibitions in detail, which were held in a different room. Unilever Food Solutions, a partner of the SA Chef Conference & Expo 2025, and Chef Gear, a research and development company committed to creating garments and tools for chefs, advertised products at the expo. Outside of those doors were foodpreneurs and their representatives showcasing their products. A range of businesses from desserts to condiments and even an organic juice company were present. 

The beloved South African condiment has just been reimagined for a unique and tasty experience. Founded by Thulani Mlambo, Nayi Le Achaar Pâté  is a double-gold-winning product, notably for the jalapeno achaar. The term “nayi le” is derived from a Zulu expression meaning “the one you have been waiting for”. Mlambo, a former IT contract manager, is a self-proclaimed foodie wanting to enhance the beloved South African condiment. Spices such as chilli powder, and the fruit, mango, are used to create the childhood favorite snack topping. 

Mlambo is also the founder of Local to Global Foods. His mission is to highlight South African flavours around the world. His seven different flavoured achaars just might do the trick.

“I wanted to elevate the South African culinary experience to a global audience, introduce them to our South African flavours,” said Mlambo. 

Suzie Sayer has been a sales and merchandising manager at Indland at Pesto Princess for 25 years and has served as the representative for Gauteng since 2001. Pesto Princess is a pesto sauce product founded by Kathlee Guillinan, who wanted to become a professional opera singer and to fund her studies. Pesto Princess emerged as she explored her passion for food and won the heart of customers. Some of the seven flavours offered are basil pesto, coriander chilli pesto, and even Thai pesto to keep “everyone’s taste profile happy”, said Sayer. 

“It’s been such an amazing product and it’s been doing wonderfully in Cape Town. We decided to bring it to Gauteng, City of Gold. It is time for the Gauteng people to taste this beautiful product,” said Sayer. 

Joceline Mobinzo is the founder of Axeline Works, a catering company she founded in 2020 in Melville, Johannesburg.  

“Our cakes, we diversify our flavours. We decided to go with our fruity flavours, now we introduced alcoholic flavours as well,” said Mobinzo.

Attending the SA Chef Conference & Expo for the first time is an achievement for the five-year business owner. 

“It feels great, it’s amazing, it just makes me feel like you know what I worked hard enough on this product, it’s time for people to see what we do because not everyone who does cake offers the flavours that we do and the way we offer them,” said Mobinzo. 

LapheZulu is an emerging catering service created by Dalene Sylvester. The name means divine in Zulu. She wanted a name for her service that “speaks to the African continent”, said Sylvester. Her services range from decor, baking and catering for events like birthdays.

At the SA Chef Conference & Expo, her samosas were a hit with the three flavours she offered. As a condiment, she makes homemade sauces from a  green chilli relish with a tangy undertone, and a red one with a sweet undertone with a “spicy vibe”. 

“Our samosas we make those in three flavours: mutton, which is the favourite, and chicken, and the kids’ favourite is the cheese and corn samosa. People love that we sell it by the dozen, frozen or fried,” said Sylvester.

Team leader Mokashame Mxumalo at Mokka Chocolates and Confectionery, a hand crafted high quality chocolate company, uses Belgian chocolate and offers artisanal bread using a slow fermentation method. The chocolate options range from dark to milk chocolate. 

“We use local ingredients for freshness, and indigenous fruits, berries and other flavourings just to be unique,” said Mxumalo. 

Founded in 2019, she noticed the palate-shifting preferences of customers. 

“I see now there’s a shift in our population, people are kind of leaning more towards dark chocolate because it has more cocoa content in it and it is healthier,” said Mxumalo. 

Mpho Sebobane founded Sebobane on the go as a side hustle in 2015. He was previously in the insurance industry when he left his full-time job in 2019. 

With six employees, Sebobane and his team sell biltong, chilli bites, dried fruit and nuts, and currently supply local traders, canteens and tuck shops. His focus is promoting job security. 

“Mainly we employ students, just to alleviate poverty, alleviate joblessness in the location,” said Sebobane. 

SOGA Organic, the first and only certified organic citrus juice in South Africa, is committed to creating a socially and environmentally conscious product. Hayley Escorcio has been the regional sales manager for Gauteng for six years and has seen the company grow over the years, expanding on the original orange juice product to even a lime juice flavor. 

“When we started out, we started small, we had orange juice, we had grape fruit juice, we had lemon pouches and rocketts. We have since introduced lime juice, which is available most of the year but it’s quite a popular line so we sometimes run out of it because it is obviously in quite high demand,” said Escorcio. 

The products are not only refreshing, but prioritise a health conscious approach without any additives or preservatives.

“We are just proud to be able to give a product that has one single ingredient in it, and that’s it,” said Escorcio.

After speaking to a few of the exhibitions, it was time for lunch. I helped myself to different appetisers such as the basil and cashew butternut kebab. While I was munching and waiting for the next panel, Gugu Dladla, a marketer who has a passion for entrepreneurship, joined me and shared her interest in attending the expo.

“For me to have attended or be attending the event rather, it is helping me, broadening my knowledge,” said Dladla. 

I even spoke to Maja Tebatjo, a chef based in Pretoria who has been in the industry for 10 years, who attended the conference in the hope of  expanding his network and knowledge. 

“Just to network, to see the latest trends in the market, to meet my peers in the industry, just to gain more knowledge about the industry and just to see the suppliers as well,” said Tebatjo. 

The afternoon picked up after lunch and the panels resumed. I attended the AI for Restaurants talk led by Thalentha Ngobeni, founder of Dyner, a platform for the restaurant industry. He mentioned four trends driving the culinary world, creating a conversation for reflection about the future of the restaurant industry.

“Four trends are pushing the restaurant industry to an inflection point: AI, digitisation of the physical world, evolving customer needs, and the experimental economy,” said Ngobeni. 

The last panel for the first day was a quickfire chat with some of the leading chefs in South Africa. Wandile Mabaso, an award-winning chef and owner of Les Créatifs Restaurant in Johannesburg. He believes that cooking and the restaurant industry is a way to uplift South Africans and to bring “dignity back to our people, and I think it starts with us”.

Ndlovu reminded aspiring chefs in the audience that cooking is more than the dish that is being prepared, and that it supports a village of people. 

“Cooking is beyond the plate. It starts with the farmer, the butcher, the fisher,” said Ndlovu.

The evening ended with closing remarks, an audience member winning a book for her enthusiasm throughout the conference and me scoring photos with Pantshwa, Ndlovu and Mabaso which I was so eager to send to Tony. 

Unfortunately, I was unable to attend day two of the conference because I was preparing for my flight to return back to the States that week, but I have no doubt that day two was just as worthwhile.

From cooking traditional dishes like tripe, cooking over a fire, reframing the usage of AI, and using local ingredients to uplift the economy, South Africa is creating its own path in the culinary industry. 

“African ingredients also deserve a place at the table,” said Pantshwa. DM