Moud Kgomo from Bafokeng Tavern in Vosloorus has been crowned the national winner of the Mzansi Tavern Chef cook-off competition.
The competition is a partnership between Heineken Beverages, the National Liquor Traders, and Nederburg Wines, with the aim of promoting food serving in taverns as a way of moderating alcohol consumption and combating binge drinking.
At the grand finale which took place at the Nederburg Wine Estate in Paarl on Tuesday Kgomo took home R100 000 worth of tavern makeover prizes that will upgrade her tavern’s food-serving offering.
As a winner, she created an exquisite dish dubbed ‘Jack of all Trades’ which featured four types of meat, creamy samp, and dumplings, showing excellent technique, balanced flavours, and textures, as well as a fine attention to detail in her presentation. Kgomo’s dish was up against a spaghetti from Eastern Cape rival Mandisi Dlokolo, Durban-style sheep trotters from KwaZulu-Natal’s Bongiwe Shange, tripe from the Northern provinces’ Pebetse Molefi and tripe with samp and beans from Western Cape chef Grace Telana.
The 33-year-old was named the winner by the judges – master chefs Pete Goffe-Wood and Benny Masekwameng, along with CEO of the Drinks Federation of South Africa, Angela Russell.
Briefly detailing her food journey, Kgomo learned her art from her grandmother, who also started the Bafokeng Tavern as a family business. She initially saw cooking as a hobby, but said after the win, “Look where it got me!” Her ambition is to grow the food business at the tavern and “introduce new dishes and flavours to my customers”.
Goffe-Wood said the standard of cooking throughout the competition, which kicked off in the Western Cape in February, had shown the wealth of untapped talent in the tavern environment.
“Benny and I have absolutely loved the experience of travelling to five provinces to taste authentic township cuisine in the places where it is served and hearing some of the extraordinary life stories of these chefs,” he said.
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