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Cooking can make a difference.
This is something chef Kabelo Ngomane (26) is hoping to prove with his lockdown campaign. He’s cooking for five families in Kwatsaduza, Johannesburg, free of charge.
Kabelo is the head chef and co-owner of Mwari Pizza House, from where he operates his lockdown campaign.
The self-taught chef told YOU that he couldn’t just sit by and watch as many of his fellow South Africans went hungry due to the effects of the lockdown.
“The lockdown challenge was inspired by the restrictions we had as a country – not being able to travel and go to restaurants. I have limited groceries, so I’ve had to stretch my meals,” Kabelo says.
When asked what he hopes to achieve, he says: “To give them [the people of Kwatsaduza] hope that this pandemic shall pass, take their taste buds to places that they’ve never been, and to show the world that KabzaGoHard is for the people.”
KabzoGoHard is the nickname the community and his staff have given him because of his determined spirit.
Kabelo has been in the culinary industry for three years and has established himself in the hospitality industry. His resume includes a chef’s position at Wilgefontein Game Farm and chef and manager at Endaweni Pub and Eatery.
The inspiring young man also has a cookbook on the way, The Lockdown Kitchen, which will include some of the recipes for the lockdown meals he created.
“The cookbook was something that I’ve always wanted to do,” he says. “It tells the story of who KabzaGoHard is, what cuisines one can expect from him, his journey as a chef and his style of cooking, which mixes fine dining with a bit of township flair.”
Kabelo says though lockdown has been hard on his business, it’s also stimulated his creativity and he’s ready for when the restaurant can reopen.
“I was able to develop new recipes. It [lockdown] gave me the privilege to assist Mwari Pizza House to come up with new flavours that aren’t public yet. So, after lockdown, we’ll change the landscape of pizza.”
