WORDS Michaela Stehr PHOTOS Supplied
Luke Dale Robert’s Test Kitchen Carbon brings another top-tier restaurant to Joburg’s Oxford Parks strip.
The latest iteration of the most talked-about restaurant in South Africa, the Test Kitchen, is an unpretentious 38-seater almost 1 400km away from the original site.
And while it’s true that, for this new Johannesburg manifestation, Luke Dale Roberts drew inspiration from his first Cape Town establishment, the Test Kitchen Carbon stands as a fully individual concept.
Adjacent to The Shortmarket Club, Luke’s maiden Rosebank endeavour, at this new, elegant space, the food changes weekly. “I’m more excited than I have been in a while. I feel inspired again,” says Luke of his new project. “This is not a relaunch or a redo. It’s not the same as the Test Kitchen – it’s a new chapter in our creative journey.”
READ MORE: The Shortmarket Club in Joburg
Luke’s wife and business partner Sandalene Dale Roberts also runs design and furniture outfit Naturalis – so, of course, she was central in the creation of the restaurant. In fact, she and the team produced every piece of furniture in it. They also fashioned a moody and pared-back interior, where a dark palette forms a backdrop for plates of food that burst with rich colour.
When asked about the brief for the Test Kitchen Carbon, Sandalene laughs, explaining that most of her projects materialise out of intuition and feeling. Going with her gut has resulted in a setting that’s “simple, with a twist”. Standout design elements include Nguni hide-covered chairs (a Sandalene speciality), a large laser-cut wooden art piece that travelled from Cape Town, lunar-like lighting in felt and brass, and a custom herringbone wooden floor.
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