1 Michelin Star Chefs: Jean Delport, head chef, Restaurant Interlude

Jean Delport is the Executive chef at Restaurant Interlude.

Jean probably didn’t expect to get the restaurant a Michelin star in the 2019 guide and yet it did, making him the first South African chef to get a star in the UK guide and has retained the star ever since.

Biography

The chef trained at the Zevenwacht Chef School in his native South Africa, where he gained a classical French and English grounding which he took with him to Ireland.

He met Interlude owner Penny Streeter OBE at her Cape Town restaurant, Somerset West, where he worked for several years.

Described as one of the ‘key driving forces within the kitchen,’ his sous-chef, Ruan Pretorius, is also from South Africa. Before joining Jean at Interlude, Ruan worked at Restaurant Terroir at Kleine Zalze Lodge in the Cape winelands.

Restaurant Interlude

The restaurant is located in the woodland gardens of Leonardslee, a 240-acre, grade I listed estate in the outskirts of Horsham, West Sussex, formerly famous for its rhododendrons, azaleas and a colony of wallabies.

Interlude is part of the Benguela Collection, and sister to three other restaurants across the UK and South Africa: The Vineyard Kitchen in Mannings Heath, Moody Lagoon at Benguela Cove (which also has its own vineyard, where Interlude sources all its wine) and Benguela Brasserie at the Lakeside Lodge on the Swartvlei Lagoon.

Based on a hunter-gatherer meets farmer concept, respect for seasonality and local nature guide the food offering at Interlude, where ingredients either come from the vegetable gardens or from local farms.

Customers are given a choice between a ‘Garden Experience’ comprising 14 courses and an ‘Estate Experience’ – featuring 18 courses.

In an interview with The Staff Canteen in 2024, Jean shared, “For us to have a Star and the Green Star now is something that we're very proud of, something that we want to showcase as much as we can."

Since opening in late 2018, Restaurant Interlude has grown into its concept. “The concept of the restaurant has stayed the same. It hasn't changed drastically but we've grown into it a lot more,” Jean says. “We started off with a very strong ambition, a very strong idea. We possibly weren't ready for it back then, but now we are.”

Click here for the full interview.

Other Michelin Star Chefs

1 Michelin Star Chefs: Chris Eden, Executive Chef, Gidleigh Park Hotel

1 Michelin Star Chefs: Hywel Griffith, head chef and director, Beach House Restaurant

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