Luke Dale Roberts: From Disaster To 12th Best Restaurant In The World & Putting Cape Town On The Map

Few chefs have transformed a city’s dining culture like Luke Dale Roberts. From his early struggles at La Colombe — where guests literally walked out and critics dismissed his food — to building The Test Kitchen into one of the world’s most celebrated restaurants, Luke’s journey is a masterclass in resilience, creativity, and risk-taking. Along the way he’s created icons like his Café au Lait sauce (born out of sheer panic during his first week in South Africa) and turned Cape Town into one of the globe’s most exciting food destinations.

In this episode, Luke shares the highs and lows of his extraordinary career: the brutal early reviews that nearly broke him, the night his 21-course “Dark Room” tasting menu was named Best Menu of the Year, and the friendships he’s forged with legends like Heston Blumenthal — who even wrote the forward to his book. He also opens up about his Fledgelings programme, which has given hundreds of disadvantaged young people their first real chance in hospitality.

And of course, there are the stories that only Luke could tell: Jamie Oliver dropping by for dinner, Ed Sheeran turning up in Cape Town, and a weekend of paddleboarding with Orlando Bloom. Honest, funny, and unfiltered, this is Luke Dale Roberts as you’ve never heard him before.
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