After recently spending some time in a restaurant kitchen, I got my mojo back for cooking on that kind of scale. (Though I still don't think I can do the loud music thing!)

I sometimes miss my restaurant days, working in the kitchen at a law firm and also at a hotel. The dynamics are intense but once you have done it and succeeded, your love for the kitchen never leaves you.

We were an all girl team, once the sous chef left. (He was constantly drinking tea, and afterwards it became apparent that it was red wine in his tea pot, not tea.) It often took two of us to move the stock pot and a few more to change the gas.

But for me it was the energetic buzz of the pass with a few ladles dodging the service staff – or actually anyone who got in the way.

A new arrival on the JHb culinary scene has sprouted (yes a female chef), Australian born, Nancy Kinchela, executive chef at The Saxon joined by ex-sommelier from The Greenhouse, Simone Moegel. It's early days but going by Nancy's scallop bouillabaise custard and a melting cube of lamb confit matched with Simone's excellent wine knowledge – I am sure this female duo will add a unique freshness to the city's dining scene. 

Abigail