These look delish! Well done to local mini mogul, Roderick Portocarero who at the tender age of 22 has started his first company and is heading for the top!
Shortly after graduating from The Private Hotel School in Stellenbosch in March this year, the Dutch-born Portocarero started a company with his father called For the Love of Yummyness.
Capitalising on his early years living in Antwerp Belgium (until he was 14), Portocarero saw a gap in the market for traditional Belgian waffles and French crepes. The father-son duo opened their first outlet at De Warenmarkt, Stellenbosch and that was quickly followed by branches at Cape Gate, Brackenfell and the Neighbourgoods Market in Woodstock. They are currently busy with plans for the V&A Waterfront although Portocarero is quick to point out that it is still in concept phase.
I found out more…
What prompted you to want to enrol at The Private Hotel School?
I always wanted to do something in hospitality and I chose TPHS because it’s a private institution that I think offers the best learning environment. They work with the American Hospitality Academy and City & Guilds and therefore the qualifications are internationally recognised.
What course did you study?
I studied an Advanced Certificate in Hospitality Management. What I liked about the course was that it is very broad so you learn something about everything. For example you do some subjects some people do in a B.Comm.
What’s one of the key things you leaned at TPHS that has helped you get to where you are today?
Don’t crack under pressure. Maybe a bit of a cliché to say, but don’t let something bring you down if it doesn’t work out. When I was at TPHS they would put us under a lot of pressure with short deadlines for projects. This ultimately prepares one for the real industry where this happens on a daily basis.
Why crepes and waffles?
It’s a simple thing to make, yet very difficult to master. Coming from Belgium we grew up eating waffles and finding a waffle store at almost every street corner. Here in South Africa it’s not that easy to find. Yes there are a lot of people that sell waffles or say they sell Belgian waffles, but they are not Belgian waffles.
A Belgian waffle is fresh and crispy on outside and fluffy on the inside. It’s our mission to be the best in South Africa and combine two of the most popular foods in Europe.
Below – Roderick Portocarero and Matthew Mashango, master baker at For the Love of Yummyness…
Tell us about your menu…
For the team at For the Love of Yummyness the fabulous scent of crepes cooking is one of the simple joys of life. The recipes we have been passed down through many generations and what makes our products extra special is their versatile ability to translate to such a wide variety of dishes.
Whether it’s breakfast, lunch, dinner or dessert, the crepe and the waffle work as the perfect medium to build a delicious meal. We have crispy warm waffles crowned with heavenly toppings as well as a selection of sweet or savoury crepes oozing with tasty fillings.
What is your favourite filling/topping?
Definitely the ‘Delicious’ Waffle, steamy hot waffle straight from the pan with ice cream, banana, roasted tropical mixed nuts, Nutella and a flake to top it off. For the crepes, the winner for me is the Millionaire’s Shortbread: Belgian chocolate sauce with caramel and shortbread with a dollop of fresh cream.
What are your ambitions and plans?
I am busy setting up a new store which I hope will become the place to be in Cape Town. A lot of people have suggested I expand nationwide but I prefer to keep it local and focus more on the quality instead of the quantity. I would also like to focus more on markets and I think they offer the perfect relationship between product and setting.
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