A Table in the Corner

Russel Wasserfall Media
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Food
  • Updated Weekly

A Table in the Corner is the space where Russel Wasserfall chats to people in the food industry about their passion and their take on the business of eating. Russel has worked in the media and food space for over 3 decades. He's run bars, restaurants and a confectionery factory, written for dozens of food and travel publications and made a bunch of cookbooks. His show is about the nitty-gritty of the food trade in all its forms. Top chefs, food artisans, proprietors, bakers, farmers, foragers, cheesemakers, writers, photographers, bloggers... you name it. If they’re involved in the food industry, you will meet them with Russel at A Table in the Corner. 

  1. 5d ago

    S2-50. Buri - Anouchka Horn

    In this episode of A Table in the Corner, I chat to chef Anouchka Horn about Buri, the new 25-square-metre fast food banger she's opened with Neil Swart in Harrington Street. The concept is simple: take the South African boerewors roll and give it the same attention - to ingredients, sourcing and detail - that the Belly team brings to menus in their other restaurants. We talk about developing the Buri wors with Frankie Fenner, finding the right roll, making the sauces and building a menu around something that is already deeply familiar. Anouchka explains how childhood memories of Saturday morning boerewors rolls and seaside mini doughnuts have shaped the concept, while monthly specials give the team room to keep experimenting. We also talk about the challenges of running a tiny, high-volume operation serving more than 200 boerie rolls on a Saturday, and we get into the bigger question of how a restaurant can take a familiar South African food and make it feel fresh without losing what people love about it. www.rwm2012.comOn Instagram @a_table_inthecornerCover image sketched by Courtney Cara LawsonAll profile portraits by Russel Wasserfall unless otherwise creditedTitle music: 'In Time' by Olexy via Pixabay

    S2-50. Buri - Anouchka Horn

  2. Aug 24

    S2-49. CW Beau Constantia - Ivor Jones

    In this bonus episode of A Table in the Corner, Jonathan Warncke and I chat to chef Ivor Jones at Chefs Warehouse Beau Constantia, shortly before we sit down to eat his winter menu. Ivor has just returned from an intensive five-week trip, including three weeks in Thailand studying regional Thai cooking, and we talk about what he brought back with him. We get into the difference between Thai food as it is understood in the West and the cooking Ivor encountered in Thailand, as well as how travel, seasonality and new techniques feed into his constantly changing menus. Ivor also talks about ten years at Beau Constantia, why he avoids signature dishes, his focus on keeping his kitchen team creatively engaged and why winter has become an opportunity to experiment rather than simply a quieter season to get through.   (You can see the CW Beau Constantia Winter Menu episode of Table For Two on our Table Talk Youtube channel here.) www.rwm2012.comOn Instagram @a_table_inthecornerCover image sketched by Courtney Cara LawsonAll profile portraits by Russel Wasserfall unless otherwise creditedTitle music: 'In Time' by Olexy via Pixabay

    S2-49. CW Beau Constantia - Ivor Jones

  3. Aug 18

    S2-48. Voyager Piketberg - Don Albert

    In this episode of A Table in the Corner, I chat to Don Albert, the person behind The Voyager, a new boutique hotel in Piketberg. Designed and built by Don and his partner Reece, it is the latest iteration of a concept that Don first developed in Bali, built around hospitality, food and cultural exchange. We talk about why Piketberg made sense after a decade spent looking for the right place to build again, and how the Voyager idea has evolved through Don’s experiences of living, working and eating around the world. Food is central to the conversation, from the Indonesian influences that shaped Don’s cooking to the way Voyager uses food as a way of connecting with a place and its people. We also talk about what happens when a hospitality project arrives in a small town and discovers that the local community is more curious and receptive than expected. Don also has some thoughts on place-making, public spaces, tourism and the role hospitality can play in creating stronger local economies.  www.rwm2012.comOn Instagram @a_table_inthecornerCover image sketched by Courtney Cara LawsonAll profile portraits by Russel Wasserfall unless otherwise creditedTitle music: 'In Time' by Olexy via Pixabay

    S2-48. Voyager Piketberg - Don Albert

  4. Aug 14

    S2-47. Datterino - Giovanni Calvani

    In this episode of A Table in the Corner, I chat to Giovanni Calvani of Datterino, a Roman-style cafeteria and pizzeria in Cape Town’s New Riverlands Mall. Giovanni grew up in Italy and has brought a very different style of pizza to Cape Town: pinza romana, an oval-shaped pizza made with a highly hydrated dough, long fermentation and a blend of flours. We talk about why his original pizza al taglio concept didn’t immediately find an audience, how he adapted the idea for the local market, and the thinking behind Datterino’s all-day café approach. We also get into the regional differences in Italian food, the role of ancient grains and long fermentation in his dough, and why he thinks Cape Town is ready for more than just Neapolitan pizza. This episode is part of Pizza Sessions, our video series exploring the people, places and different styles shaping Cape Town’s pizza culture, brought to you by Banhoek Chilli Oil.  www.rwm2012.comOn Instagram @a_table_inthecornerCover image sketched by Courtney Cara LawsonAll profile portraits by Russel Wasserfall unless otherwise creditedTitle music: 'In Time' by Olexy via Pixabay

    S2-47. Datterino - Giovanni Calvani

  5. Aug 11

    S2-46. Food Fanatics - Elaine Rousseau

    In this episode of A Table in the Corner, I chat to Elaine Rousseau of Food Fanatics and Homestead Venue about a career in hospitality that began almost by accident and has grown into catering, events, mentoring and community food projects. Elaine traces her journey from learning the trade at the Swartland Hotel and working at Paddagang Restaurant in Tulbagh, to starting Food Fanatics in 1998. We talk about the practical realities of catering, the importance of logistics and site visits, and the role she has played in mentoring young chefs, including Clara Bubenzer of the Lebanese Bakery. We also talk about the GRAPA Garden, a community vegetable garden in Plumstead that has turned a neglected piece of city land into a productive growing space, employing two people and involving around 30 volunteers. Elaine explains why keeping produce affordable and making the garden genuinely accessible to the surrounding community matters to her. And finally, we talk about Homestead, the venue she developed as a home for Food Fanatics, and how the business has evolved from predominantly off-site catering to a combination of events, Friday pop-ups and public food occasions. It's a conversation about hospitality as work, business, teaching and community, and the people who make all of those things possible.  www.rwm2012.comOn Instagram @a_table_inthecornerCover image sketched by Courtney Cara LawsonAll profile portraits by Russel Wasserfall unless otherwise creditedTitle music: 'In Time' by Olexy via Pixabay

    S2-46. Food Fanatics - Elaine Rousseau

  6. Aug 4

    S2-45. Kerston Foods - Richard Kershaw

    What keeps a restaurant running and the dishes seamlessly appearing on tables? You seldom bump into a chef pushing a trolley around a supermarket shopping for the next service, so how do the ingredients get into their kitchens? In this episode of A Table in the Corner, I chat to Richard Kershaw, co-founder of Kerston Foods, which has quietly stocked the pantry of Cape Town's hospitality industry for more than 30 years.  Richard offers a rare perspective on the restaurant business, from sourcing ingredients and supporting small producers to navigating COVID, sustainability and the changing needs of chefs. We also explore the relationships that underpin hospitality, why service extends far beyond the dining room and what it takes to keep hundreds of kitchens stocked, one delivery at a time.  www.rwm2012.comOn Instagram @a_table_inthecornerCover image sketched by Courtney Cara LawsonAll profile portraits by Russel Wasserfall unless otherwise creditedTitle music: 'In Time' by Olexy via Pixabay

    S2-45. Kerston Foods - Richard Kershaw

  7. Jul 28

    S2-44. Unexplored Cape Town - Dennis Molewa

    If you think you know Cape Town's food scene, this conversation might make you think again. In this episode of A Table in the Corner, I sit down with Dennis Molewa, founder of Unexplored Cape Town, whose work takes visitors beyond the city's celebrated restaurants into the cafés, markets and neighbourhood kitchens where many of the city's brown and immigrant communities eat every day. Dennis explains how growing up in multicultural Frankfurt, working in hospitality and later settling in South Africa led him to explore the city through its food. We discuss Malay and Xhosa restaurants, Somali cafés, Ethiopian eteries, West African kitchens, the remarkable food market around the Bellville Transport Interchange and why so much of Cape Town's culinary life remains invisible to both tourists and many locals. Our conversation also looks at food tourism, heritage and the role restaurants play in preserving culture. Dennis argues that tourism can be a force for inclusion by supporting small food businesses and creating opportunities for people whose stories are rarely told. It's a thoughtful discussion about identity, migration, public space and why some of the city's most rewarding meals are found well beyond the familiar dining guides.   www.rwm2012.comOn Instagram @a_table_inthecornerCover image sketched by Courtney Cara LawsonAll profile portraits by Russel Wasserfall unless otherwise creditedTitle music: 'In Time' by Olexy via Pixabay

    S2-44. Unexplored Cape Town - Dennis Molewa

  8. Jul 23

    S2-43. Pizza Sessions 04 - Novo Pizza + Wine

    This episode of A Table in the Corner is another in our Pizza Sessions series, supported by Banhoek Chilli Oil. So naturally, I arrived at Novo Pizza + Wine with a box of Banhoek under my arm, ready to talk pizza with owners Ammy and Arno, and to discover why so many Capetonians had told me, "You have to put Novo on your list."  Novo Pizza + Wine is a neighbourhood pizzeria in Mowbray built around the simple idea that great pizza brings people together. Ammy and Arno share the story of  creating the kind of local restaurant they wanted for their own community. We talk about the challenge of finding great pizzaiolos, learning the craft from the ground up, and how inspiration from Burrata, Massimo's and travels through Italy helped shape the pizzas they serve today.  We also explore what makes a neighbourhood restaurant thrive, from sourcing exceptional ingredients and building relationships with regular customers to creating pizzas that people return for week after week. Along the way we discuss long-fermented dough, Cape Town's evolving pizza culture, the story behind Novo's cult favourite Fellini pizza, and, of course, whether chilli oil deserves a place on every slice. www.rwm2012.comOn Instagram @a_table_inthecornerCover image sketched by Courtney Cara LawsonAll profile portraits by Russel Wasserfall unless otherwise creditedTitle music: 'In Time' by Olexy via Pixabay

    S2-43. Pizza Sessions 04 - Novo Pizza + Wine
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About

A Table in the Corner is the space where Russel Wasserfall chats to people in the food industry about their passion and their take on the business of eating. Russel has worked in the media and food space for over 3 decades. He's run bars, restaurants and a confectionery factory, written for dozens of food and travel publications and made a bunch of cookbooks. His show is about the nitty-gritty of the food trade in all its forms. Top chefs, food artisans, proprietors, bakers, farmers, foragers, cheesemakers, writers, photographers, bloggers... you name it. If they’re involved in the food industry, you will meet them with Russel at A Table in the Corner. 

Information

  • Creator
    Russel Wasserfall Media
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    202
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Russel Wasserfall Media
  • Show Website
    A Table in the Corner