The Test Kitchen in Cape Town closes due to Covid-19 uncertainty

Article originally published on Eat Out. Iconic and award-winning establishment, The Test Kitchen has announced it will be closing its doors on 30 September 2021. In a media statement on Thursday, Chef proprietor, Luke Dale Roberts said that with the current global uncertainty around Covid-19 it has become too difficult to sustain a restaurant of its kind.

30 Jul 2021

Luke Dale Roberts - Image: Sourced

The Test Kitchen has operated for eleven years, having won numerous local and international awards in that time.

The Test Kitchen impresses at the World's 50 Best Restaurant Awards

16 Jun 2016

In an interview with Eat Out, Dale Roberts provided insight into what prompted the decision to close The Test Kitchen: “There are mixed emotions, of course. I am sad in a way, but at the same time, I feel like it’s the right time to do it. It was obviously a very tough 18-months and I feel happy that we have managed to see everyone through those 18-months but in order to sustain the running of the restaurant, we need to be pretty full for lunch and dinner and with the number of people that we have running the show, I am concerned that it is not the case and it puts a lot of pressure on us.”

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As devastating to the SA culinary industry this news has been there are a few silver linings, as Dale Roberts now moves his attention to new and exciting projects.

“Jason Kosmas, the chef at The Pot Luck Club and I are looking at a collab dinner or a series of dinners in October or November and I am going to shift a lot of my creative attention into ‘Fledgelings’ and assist them, and spend time mentoring the students. I am also looking at a few projects in Johannesburg” explains Roberts.