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Award-winning Cape Town boutique hotel Ellerman House will welcome one of South Africa’s most celebrated culinary talents to Bantry Bay this summer, as Chef of the Year Johannes Richter brings his award-winning Durban restaurant, The LivingRoom at Summerhill Guest Estate, to the hotel for a four-month residency at Curate.

Running from December 2026 to March 2027, Curate by The LivingRoom will see Richter and his team take over the hotel’s multi-course fine-dining restaurant, bringing a distinctive expression of South African cuisine to one of Cape Town’s most exclusive dining destinations.

Since opening in 2025, Curate has reflected Ellerman House’s commitment to showcasing South Africa through a menu inspired by the country’s terroir and culinary traditions. The residency marks a natural evolution of this offering, with Richter drawing on the work of small-scale Cape producers and growers while exploring the broader culinary and cultural diversity of the country.

The residency will bring together the talents of both restaurant teams. Akhona Dukwana, who has been part of The LivingRoom for eight years, will step in as head chef, cooking alongside Richter, while Johanna Richter will shape the service and train the front-of-house team. Curate’s sommelier, Joe Beziek, named South Africa’s Best Young Sommelier 2026, will lead the floor and create wine pairings from Ellerman House’s cellar of approximately 10,000 bottles of South African wine.

“Ellerman House has always been a place to show our guests the best of South Africa, whether that is on the walls, in the cellar, through our hospitality, or on the plate,” says Ellerman House CEO, Carol Kohne. “Johannes and Johanna have built something remarkable in Durban, cooking with an honesty and a respect that sits very close to our own values. Welcoming The LivingRoom team to Curate is incredibly exciting.”

One of the country’s most decorated chefs, Richter has become known for championing indigenous and local ingredients, celebrating culinary and cultural diversity, and advancing sustainable fine dining. He trained in Michelin-starred kitchens in Germany, including Berlin’s three-star Rutz, where he met his wife, Johanna Richter, now co-owner, sommelier and front-of-house manager at The LivingRoom.

The couple opened The LivingRoom at Summerhill Guest Estate in 2017, creating a distinctive culinary experience rooted in KwaZulu-Natal’s cultural and culinary diversity. Its approach centres on hyper-endemic ingredients and traditional preservation techniques, with approximately 95% of its suppliers based within 100 kilometres of the restaurant.

The restaurant was named Eat Out Restaurant of the Year in 2022, holds three Eat Out stars and is recognised as a 50 Best Discovery restaurant. Johannes Richter was named Eat Out Chef of the Year in both 2025 and 2026 and holds Two Knives from The Best Chef Awards.

Sustainability is central to The LivingRoom’s philosophy. The kitchen works exclusively with fresh, unprocessed ingredients, does not serve wild-caught seafood and has eliminated single-use plastic. The restaurant has also operated off-grid since 2024. These commitments have earned it the Eat Out Sustainability Award in 2023 and the Eat Out Green Star in 2025 and 2026 – principles that will accompany the team to Ellerman House.

“We are incredibly proud to partner with one of the best hotels in the world, whose commitment to showcasing South Africa aligns so closely with our ethos,” says Johannes Richter. “We look forward to bringing diners a unique expression of South African dining, built on the ingredients of the Cape, rooted in sustainability and celebrating the country's culinary diversity.”

Curate is housed in Ellerman House’s Wine Gallery, an immersive dining space that celebrates South African wine through art and design. Among its defining features is Angus Taylor’s Terroir Wall, comprising 100 copper frames containing soil from estates represented in the hotel’s wine collection. The room’s centrepiece is an iconic carbon-fibre corkscrew wine rack designed by Brian Steinhobel.

Conceived to express a sense of place in much the same way that wine reflects its terroir, Curate provides a fitting setting for Richter’s approach to cooking, with the residency bringing together the ingredients, stories and culinary traditions of South Africa.

Curate by The LivingRoom will be open for dinner from Tuesday to Saturday, welcoming both hotel guests and outside diners. Reservations are essential and can be made through Dineplan. A confirmed booking serves as the invitation to dine at Curate by The LivingRoom.

Parking at Ellerman House is limited, and guests are encouraged to arrive by Uber or a similar transport service.