Tyrone finds something meaningful and passionate in cooking
“I admire chef Gareth Jordon from the Palazzo Hotel, chef Matthew Foxon from 54 on Bath, chef Marthinus Ferreira from DW Eleven –13 and Kobus van Der Merwe from Wolfgat in Paternoster.”
Budding local chef Tyrone Kleynhans’ first time in a commercial kitchen was 17 years ago when, as a 14-year old, he worked at Swiss Chalet in Calgary, Canada.
But the chef bug didn’t immediately bite, and Kleynhans’ first love remained music and so he pursued a career as a DJ.
“Although I loved this part of my life, I just felt I was not fulfilling my true potential,” said Kleynhans, who today works as a head chef for Capsicum.
By the time he was 25 years old, Kleynhans felt desperate to find something meaningful and fulfilling to do with his life.
“At this point my sister was struggling with eating disorder and I started cooking food for her to try to help her overcome it,”he said.
To make it fun, Kleynhans told his sister to choose a new country every day and he would cook a well-known dish from that country for her.
“Through this experience I created a deep comfort and a sense of calm with cooking, and found that while I was helping her it was really helping me too.”
Kleynhans’ strategy worked. His sister recovered fully, but he found himself inexplicably being pulled back to South Africa. He had moved to Canada with his mother, stepfather, brother and sister when he was 13 years old and now, 12 years later all he wanted to do was return to his birthplace.
“I jumped on the computer and started looking at culinary schools in South Africa and, out of all the schools I read about, I decided I wanted to study at Capsicum Culinary Studio.
“I returned in 2013, studied at the Boksburg campus in 2014, met my wife Lydia, who was also studying at Capsicum, and graduated in 2015. I got a great education, learned a lot about food, got placed at some incredible places around South Africa and now I work for Capsicum as head chef for their newly-opened bistro-style restaurant, which is situated at their Rosebank campus.”
He said people often asked him why he moved back to South Africa, and has always told them that it is the best country in the world.
“It has amazing people, great culture, a wonderful lifestyle, spectacular landscapes and, of course, brilliant food. I will forever be proud to be a South African.”
So what made Kleynhans choose Capsicum? “It was very inviting, reasonably priced and I was welcomed by professional staff who, I felt, truly cared about my training as a chef, and not just about the money.
“I felt like they really wanted me to succeed and do well. My lecturer at the time would stay after hours to help me.”
Kleynhans is thrilled to be heading up his own kitchen. He says the vision behind the restaurant is to create a platform for the students to practice in the kitchen and get ready for the industry.
“In keeping with some of the values that are taught at Capsicum, the breakfast and lunch menus are very fresh healthy and interesting.
“My favourite dish on the menu is our panko crumbed halloumi salad with salmon.”
He said people who wished to enter the cooking industry shouldn’t think it is a cooking show you watch on TV, because it’s not.
“No matter what you want to become in this industry, you will have to start at the bottom and work very hard to prove yourself. Never lose your passion and always practice cooking on family and friends.
“Always stay on top of the trends and what is happening in the food world, and always respect food and where it has come from,” he added.
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