Eat your heart out

For the second year in a row, The Test Kitchen was named the country's top restaurant at the Eat Out Awards. We spoke to head chef Luke Dale-Roberts to find the secret ingredient of his winning recipe.

Restaurant of the Year: The Test Kitchen (Luke Dale-Roberts)

Eugene Yiga: First of all, congratulations on your win. How do you feel?

Luke Dale-Roberts: Absolutely brilliant, super excited. We've got the whole team together for a celebratory braai tonight.

And what do you think sets you guys apart?

The food that we do at The Test Kitchen is different. It's all about discovering new flavours and new flavour combinations. I think the space is also unique; it's a different dining experience. Whether you're from here or from abroad, people are surprised by it.

In terms of food flavour and the dishes on the menu, we try to make it delicious for everyone, which is not always easy. But if something is obviously delicious, and immediately delicious, someone will like it.

What's your favourite dish on the menu?

My favourite dish is always the one we've come up with most recently. Right now that's a New York cheesecake, which looks like a Chinese fish painting. It's sugar-free cheesecake but it's savoury and it's got crab. It's quite a cool dish.

And what do you eat at home?

It depends. If I've had a couple of days' holiday, then I start getting creative and start messing around with whatever is there. If I'm working hard, then it's something quick and easy. I bought a few pies from Woolies for dinner tonight.