Kempton chef cooks in top job
'I wish to keep advancing the culinary knowledge of young people and growing the global profile of South Africa’s food'
Executive chef Martin Kobald of Kempton Park, has been elected as vice-president of the World Association of Chefs Societies (WACS).
WACS is a global organisation for official chefs associations – representing around 10 million professional chefs in over 100 countries – dedicated to maintaining and improving the culinary standards of global cuisine.
A culinary extraordinaire in South Africa since 1988, Chef Kobald’s appointment to this high-profile role will help shine a spotlight on South Africa’s culinary industry. He will focus on developing young chefs in South Africa as well as around the world, with projects like sustainability education, growing the association’s membership, advancing the culinary arts and promoting WACS’s philanthropic projects like Feed the Planet and Chefs Without Borders.
After working his way up the culinary food chain in his birthplace, Austria, Chef Kobald moved to South Africa in 1988 – when he was recruited by Southern Sun as a Chef de Partie. Kobald moved up the ranks at Southern Sun and Holiday Inn, holding a range of senior posts within the food and beverage team.
He realised an entrepreneurial dream when he established an Austrian delicatessen, Kobald’s Catering, in 1995 – and thereafter, the acclaimed 33 High Street restaurant in Modderfontein.
Among his various roles within industry associations, Chef Kobald today inspires and teaches young chefs through his ChefMLK School of Cooking in Kempton Park.
Chef Kobald also worked closely with the late Dr Billy Gallagher – honorary life president of WACS and honorary life president of the South African Chefs Association (SACA) – through his participation in the two associations. He has been involved with SACA since 1988, having served as chairman for the Gauteng region between 1993 and 1999.
Following that, he was appointed to the board of directors and was responsible for managing the portfolio of overseas promotions. Today, Chef Kobald is an honourary past president of SACA.
Says Chef Kobald: “The late Dr Billy Gallagher was an enormous inspiration to me as I developed my career and my culinary skills, and it is my goal to keep his legacy alive. Like Gallagher, I wish to keep advancing the culinary knowledge of young people and growing the global profile of South Africa’s food and catering industry. I will also be able to bring a wealth of global knowledge back to South Africa.”
