What is the difference between a chef's table and a tasting menu?

Our chef's table is a six-seat counter dinner on Fridays and Saturdays, cooked by a named senior chef who explains each of seven courses as it lands. A tasting menu is a multi-course dinner served at your dining table, from four guests, on the date you choose.

How much does a chef's table cost in Cape Town?

The chef's table sits in our seven-course signature band, from R1,600–2,200 per person, so from R9,600 for six seats. Groceries are billed at cost and wine pairing is an add-on from R450–650 pp. Zone 1 carries no travel fee.

Can more than six people book the chef's table?

No. Six seats is the format, because beyond six the conversation with the chef turns into a normal dinner. For larger groups, a five- or seven-course tasting menu at the dining table is the better choice.

Can we book a chef's table on a weeknight?

Occasionally, for full-villa buyouts where the senior bench allows it. Fridays and Saturdays are the guaranteed nights. A tasting menu can be booked on any night that suits you.

Is a tasting menu cheaper than the chef's table?

The five-course tasting starts from R1,200 per person against the chef's table band from R1,600 per person. The seven-course signature tasting at the dining table starts at the same R1,600 as the chef's table.

PLANNING — FINE DINING

Chef's Table vs Tasting Menu at Home — How They Differ and Which to Book

Both are multi-course evenings cooked in your own kitchen, and people often use the names interchangeably. They are different products, though, with different seat counts, nights and prices. Here is how to tell which one you want.

myCHEF editorialReviewed by the Cape Town teamLast updated October 2026

Book a chef's table when the conversation with the chef is the point: six seats at your kitchen island or counter, one seating per evening on a Friday or Saturday, a senior chef who is never substituted, and a seven-course arc from R1,600–2,200 per person. Book a tasting menu when you want a polished multi-course dinner served at your dining table: five courses from R1,200 per person, minimum four guests, on the night that suits you. from R1 600–2 200 pp per person · Min 4 guests.

The short answer

Both are cooked in your villa or home, both include full service and complete cleanup, and both bill groceries at cost with receipts. The difference is the format of the evening, not the quality of the food.

A chef plating a tasting course at a kitchen counter with guests seated close by

Side by side

The published facts for each format, taken from our rate card and service pages.

Included

Seats: the chef's table is six seats, with no seventh chair; a tasting menu starts at four guests and suits a normal dinner table.
Nights: the chef's table runs Fridays and Saturdays only, with midweek occasionally possible for full-villa buyouts; a tasting menu is booked on the date you choose.
Courses: seven at the chef's table; five on the standard tasting menu, with the seven-course signature tasting available at the dining table too.

Quoted separately

Price: the chef's table sits in the seven-course band from R1,600–2,200 pp; the five-course tasting starts from R1,200 pp.
Who cooks: at the chef's table, the named senior chef on your booking is the chef who cooks, and if they cannot make the date you choose between moving it or a full refund.
Where you sit: at the counter or kitchen island, arm's length from the cooking, versus at your dining table with courses arriving from the kitchen.

What the chef's table evening feels like

Guests take their seats at 18:30 and the first course is already moving. The senior chef explains each plate as it lands, answers questions as they come and adjusts courses live when the table wants more of something. The pass is your kitchen island and the view is yours, so the theatre of a restaurant counter arrives without the restaurant.

Six seats is a deliberate limit. Beyond six, the exchange with the chef breaks down into an ordinary dinner, which is why the seat count is protected. Dress code, music and timing are yours; some tables dress up, others stay in shorts and ask questions with their mouths full.

What a tasting menu evening feels like

A tasting menu at home is a dinner party with a restaurant's structure. The chef works in the kitchen, courses arrive at the table in sequence with a printed menu, and the conversation stays among your guests. It suits anniversaries, milestone birthdays and tables where some guests would rather not be on show at a counter.

It also scales more easily. Four guests is the minimum, and a longer table simply means more plates. If you want to plan one yourself, our host's guide on how to host a tasting menu dinner at home covers pacing, wine and the evening's rhythm, and our fine dining at home page sets out the menus.

Worked costs for the same six guests

Orientation arithmetic using published from-prices only, before groceries and any Zone 2–3 travel or festive multiplier.

01Chef's table, six seats, seven courses: from R9,600 (R1,600 pp), up to R13,200 at the top of the band.
02Five-course tasting menu for six at the dining table: from R7,200.
03Seven-course signature tasting for six at the dining table: from R9,600.
04Sommelier wine pairing for six, either format: from R2,700 (R450–650 pp).
05Travel: Zone 1 carries no travel fee; Winelands venues follow the published travel table.

Which one to book

A quick way to decide.

Included

Choose the chef's table if you are six or fewer, food-curious, and want to talk to the person cooking.
Choose it if a Friday or Saturday works and you are happy to join the waitlist when your first date is taken.
Choose a tasting menu if you are more than six, need a weeknight, or want the evening centred on your own guests.

Quoted separately

Choose a tasting menu if the dinner is a celebration with speeches, where a counter would feel like a stage.
Either way, wine pairing is an add-on, and you are equally welcome to open your own cellar.

Dietary needs in either format

Allergies, vegetarian courses and halaal-friendly protocols, with strict separation and dedicated equipment, are agreed in the consult before the menu is written. At the chef's table, every plate comes from one chef working in front of you, so substitutions are precise rather than approximate. On a tasting menu, the same planning means nobody at the table gets the apology plate.

Booking and the waitlist

Fridays and Saturdays fill first, especially over Ke Dezemba. If your chef's table date is taken, one WhatsApp message puts you on the waitlist. Cancellations are offered in order, we confirm or release within a day of a seat opening, and no deposit is taken until a seat is actually yours.

For either format, send the date, the area, the guest count and any dietary needs on WhatsApp. We reply within the hour, 08:00–20:00 SAST, and a fixed itemised quote arrives before the 50% deposit locks the date.