From catering 120 pizzas for the Australian team during the last Rugby World Cup to co-founding the well-known Pastryworks chain of bakeries in the Bay, professional chef Ralph Gottschalk will soon be whipping up scrumptious meals for those lucky enough to attend the Tokyo Olympic Games in Japan.
The internationally renowned chef, who was born and raised in Germany but is based in Gqeberha, is no stranger to catering for global sporting events.
He was responsible for overseeing kitchens overseas during the 2019 Rugby World Cup, at several Fifa World Cups, at the European Olympics in Azerbaijan and at the Asian Olympic Games in Turkmenistan, among other high-profile events.
Gottschalk is now in Qatar to prepare for the 2022 Fifa World Cup, where he will be catering for between 5,000 and 25,000 people at a number of stadiums.
This week, he will jet off to Japan to offer his culinary expertise during the Olympics.
“This is not sausage and popcorn,” Gottschalk quipped.
“We cater for restaurants, lounges, buffets, private suites and the Michelin Star level restaurant at The Pearl in Doha.”
The founder, executive chef and principal of the SA Academy of Culinary Arts (Saaca) — which is based in Gqeberha — said while he was in Tokyo for the 2019 Rugby World Cup he was offered the opportunity to cater for the Olympics, which he could not refuse.
Gottschalk said he wanted to cater for the golf course specifically because he so enjoyed the game.
“I said I would like to do the golf course because I absolutely love golf and if time allows I would like to play golf too,” he said.
During the event, Gottschalk and his team will be preparing and serving Asian-based, Western-inspired meals to 600 VVIP and VIP guests at the 18th hole fairway.
“It is going to be fabulous,” he said.
Having cooked for the likes of Oprah Winfrey, the late Nelson Mandela, Bill Clinton, Tom Cruise and Michael Jordan, he is now busy identifying hotels with the right infrastructure, kitchen space, staffing and procurement set-up for the 2022 Fifa World Cup.
He was doing this through a partnership with Qatar Hospitality, a hotel group with about 1,800 establishments worldwide, he said.
“Everything has gone well, now we are waiting to see which stadiums we are going to get,” Gottschalk said.
Asked what the future held beyond Tokyo, Gottschalk said he would be cooking for a number of upcoming sporting events including the Ryder Cup in Italy, the Olympic Winter Games and the next Rugby World Cup, among others.
“There are very exciting things ahead for us,” Gottschalk said.
He said he would also like to continue growing the culinary industry in the Bay, as well as the province.
“We have the talent.
“I would love to have a really big school in [Gqeberha] and the Eastern Cape, not only for culinary [training] and cooking, but people can come to us for butchery lessons, fish mongering and wine appreciation classes,” Gottschalk said.
Saaca’s students represent SA in the culinary Olympics every year and the country is currently placed sixth in the world.
HeraldLIVE
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