SA’s own Chef Johannes Richter is packing his knives and heading to Italy once more, this time to cook alongside a bona fide culinary legend. The Eat Out Woolworths Financial Services Chef of the Year and force behind The LivingRoom at Summerhill Guest Estate will join three-star Michelin Chef Norbert Niederkofler at the celebrated Ein Prosit festival in Udine in October.
For those unfamiliar, Ein Prosit is not your average food festival. Each year, the Friuli Venezia Giulia city becomes a playground for the world’s most inventive chefs, who come together for a multi-day celebration of collaboration, creativity and cuisine. It is where gastronomy’s great minds meet to stir the pot, sometimes literally.
This year’s pairing is particularly poetic. Niederkofler, of Atelier Moessmer in the Dolomites, is a pioneer of modern sustainable cooking, known for his “Cook the Mountain” philosophy, an approach rooted in hyperlocal ingredients, zero waste and deep respect for nature’s rhythm. Richter, who has been championing similar principles in KwaZulu-Natal, sees this collaboration as something of a culinary pilgrimage.
“Chef Norbert has certainly been a huge inspiration to us at The LivingRoom,” says Richter. “His ‘Cook the Mountain’ philosophy is definitely a benchmark for hyperlocal cooking. I couldn’t be more excited to cook alongside him and his team.”
Richter’s participation marks his second collaboration with a Three-Star Michelin chef this year, following his earlier work with Chef Himanshu Saini of Dubai’s Trèsind Studio. His growing international presence is more than a personal victory; it is a testament to the increasingly global conversation around South African cuisine.
As if one Michelin collaboration were not enough, Richter will also feature in a fire-led feast alongside an eclectic group of chefs from around the world: India’s Johnson Ebenezer, Belgium’s Willem Hiele, Portugal’s Vasco Coelho Santo and Italy’s Gianluca Fusto. The line-up reads like the culinary equivalent of an all-star band, promising sparks, smoke and the kind of dishes that tell stories without saying a word.
After Ein Prosit, Richter will turn his attention to Milan, mentoring his sous-chef, Luckson Mare, who will be representing SA at the S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Grand Finale later in the month. November sees him take the stage at Gastromasa in Istanbul, one of the world’s most respected gastronomy conferences, where he will share ideas with chefs shaping the future of food.
From Durban to Dubai, Milan to Istanbul, Richter’s year has been nothing short of extraordinary. Each destination adds another chapter to a story that began in the quiet hills of KwaZulu-Natal and now resonates on the world stage. His steadfast commitment to sustainability, locality and the celebration of South African culture continues to earn him a place among the most exciting voices in contemporary global cuisine.
If Cook the Mountain is about honouring place, Richter’s work is about reimagining home, one dish, one collaboration and one inspired bite at a time.
