Margot Janse | Obsession | Northcote

Chef Margot Janse of Le Quartier Francais’ multi award-winning restaurant, The Tasting Room in South Africa, will be participating in the 15th anniversary of chef Nigel Howarth`s annual OBSESSION festival at Northcote Manor.

Margot will be cooking on the 3rd February 2015, alongside chefs Angela Hartnett and Lisa Allen. Obsession 15 will see chef patron Nigel Haworth and a galaxy of Michelin stars descend on Northcote this month and next, for a series of showstopping dinners that will showcase local produce with truly global flavour. Taking place across both the restaurant and the luxurious Louis Roederer Rooms, the line up – featuring 25 chefs and 27 Michelin stars – brings together both national and international talent. Dutch-born Margot Janse, who has been at The Tasting Room for almost 2 decades, offers the finest and most genuine South African dining experience through an 8 course African Surprise Tasting Menu which showcases and reinterprets indigenous South African and African produce. Janse’s aim is to be 100% African, when she first arrived in South Africa over 20 years ago, she witnessed a culinary culture where chefs

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and restaurateurs dismissed local delicacies and products in favour of flown-in scallops, foie gras and cheese. At Le Quartier Francais, Janse has taken a different path, embracing a distinctly local direction, sourcing ingredients from Le Quartier Francais's gardens or small producers who are as passionate as she is. Throughout this month Janse will also be collaborating with the national museum of her motherland- The Rijksmuseum in the Netherlands, home to masterpieces by Rembrandt, Frans Hals, and

Johannes Vermeer. She will be shining her light on the museum`s newly opened RIJKS restaurant by curating the menu and creating new dishes with the restaurant`s own chefs. Open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week, the menu will feature dishes that primarily focus on products from Dutch soil. A team of top chefs under the supervision of Joris Bijdendijk will be reinforced with an internationally renowned guest chef curating each season. Margot will be the first. Janse is one of the few females named by Relais & Chateaux as one of its "Grand Chefs" (and one of only two Grand Chefs in Africa) see more about her here.

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