Rudi Liebenberg

A South-African native, Rudi Liebenberg brings a wealth of experience and global recognition to his new role as Executive Chef of The Montenotte. A culinary veteran within the luxury hospitality space, his recent relocation to Cork, follows a 13-year tenure at Mount Nelson, A Belmond Hotel, Cape Town and The Saxon Hotel, Johannesburg, prior to that.

Passionate about his efforts to help protect the planet, Rudi is known for his conscious, zero-waste approach to cooking which is reflected throughout the menus. Excited by the abundance of Irish artisans and producers, he is committed to sourcing local wherever possible, celebrating the best quality ingredients from the surrounding land and sea. In honour of his homeland, his cooking is infused with a South-African influence, whilst also drawing inspiration from Europe’s traditional techniques and emerging foodie hotspots.

His creativity extends to a love of art, brought to life through high-quality, visually appealing dishes which often begin as an illustrative sketch on paper, before being tried and tested in the kitchen.

In his new role as Executive Chef, Rudi is dedicated to fostering a new and exciting chapter in the hotel’s gastronomical offering, whilst contributing to elevating Cork city’s restaurant and bar scene

A message from the Chef:

This is not new in our kitchen and nothing new in culinary world, we realised that too many recipes relied heavily on an abundance of too many perfect bits, promoting us to take action. I wanted only the minimum vegetable waste to end up in the bin. We needed to discover why we became chefs, creativity in cooking is defined by what you as a chef can do with it, not how quickly it can find the bin or a soup.

But most importantly it is all about showing respect for an ingredient and respect for a farmer. Food is expensive, we owe it to the ingredient to utilise as much of it as possible and to be as innovative as possible for our customers.

It is not always the solution to put it in the stock pot or a soup. But, that’s where we come into play.

How it works:

Waste is constantly changing, and it varies from one day to the next. Therefore, it wouldn’t be practical to have a fixed menu with specific items. Instead, our menu adapts based on the availability of surplus ingredients.

AWARDS

Celebrating The Montenotte