Chefs Warehouse at Tintswalo Atlantic has announced the appointment of Cameron Smith as head chef, succeeding Braam Beyers on the rocky shores of the Atlantic Ocean, below Chapman’s Peak Drive.
Beyers has been in charge of the kitchen at CW Tintswalo Atlantic since it opened in November 2020, after nearly seven years with the Chefs Warehouse (CW) group. He is now on an extended ‘learning holiday’ in Europe to gain more experience and broaden his international horizons.
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Cameron Smith (29) joins Tintswalo from CW Maison, where he worked as a senior sous chef for the previous year. Smith was born in the Eastern Cape and attended St Andrews College in Makhanda before enrolling at Varsity College in Cape Town to pursue a BCom in Finance.
He discovered a deep passion for food and flavour while working part-time in the food and catering industry during his studies, which led him to change course to study Culinary Arts at the SA Chef’s Academy.
Smith has spent the last seven and a half years gaining experience at some of South Africa’s most well-known fine dining establishments, where he has been mentored by some of the country’s most renowned chefs. His career path took him from three years as commis chef at La Colombe under chefs Scott Kirton and James Gaag to senior sous chef at La Petite Colombe in Franschhoek with Chef John Norris before moving to Protégé, where he was later promoted to head chef.
He was then appointed head chef of Le Petit Manoir in Franschhoek, where he remained. When the pandemic halted the restaurant industry, he continued to run Le Petit Manoir’s Deli and takeaway dining service, as well as preparing food for the Franschhoek feeding scheme’s soup kitchen.
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He joined Liam Tomlin and the Chefs Warehouse group in February 2022 as senior sous chef to Head Chef David Schneider at CW Maison in Franschhoek, before accepting the opportunity to lead the kitchen team at CW Tintswalo Atlantic from June 2023 under Chef Patron Ivor Jones.
CW Tintswalo Atlantic is a multi-sensory dining experience where diners can enjoy the idyllic views and fresh sea breeze on the deck or dine fireside in the modern dining room. The decor is simple, allowing the surrounding ocean, mountains, fynbos and unique food and wine experience to shine.
Braam Beyers, the outgoing head chef, has spent the last month collaborating with Smith to ensure a smooth transition in the CW Tintswalo Atlantic kitchen. Since its inception two and a half years ago, the restaurant has consistently outperformed, earning a number of local and international accolades.
It was named one of the best new restaurants in the world on the Condé Nast Traveller Hot List the same year it opened (2021). In the 2022 World Culinary Awards, it was named ‘South Africa’s Best Hotel Restaurant’, and it received a one-star rating in the 2022 Eat Out Awards before receiving a two-plate award in the 2023 Gourmet Guide ratings.
The chilly weather and choppy seas of the Cape will serve as inspiration for Chef Cameron Smith’s new menu. Building on Tomlin’s quality, fine-dining global tapas for 2 concepts, he says: ‘We will continue to focus on ingredients that are fresh, local and sustainable, paying homage to the ocean on our doorstep. Diners may expect a menu that goes a little beyond traditional French cuisine to showcase some of South Africa’s many cultural influences, which will include a selection of more comforting dishes suited to the cooler season.’
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Picture: Supplied
