Review: Capetown’s The Pot Luck Club at the Waldorf Hilton

My interest piqued when I heard about the pop up of acclaimed Cape Town Chef Luke Dale Roberts’ The Pot Luck Club here in London. Having regularly travelled to Cape Town over the last 20 years I have followed his journey and enjoyed dining at his establishments on multiple occasions.

Luke’s career began in the United Kingdom, where he trained in classical European kitchens before moving through Asia, working in Singapore, South Korea and Indonesia. These global influences from French haute cuisine to Asian street food are evident throughout his cooking.

Chef Luke Dale Roberts. Image courtesy of The Pot Luck Club

Our family would regularly dine at La Colombe restaurant when it was based at the Constatia Uitsig winery where Luke served as Executive Chef upon his arrival in Cape Town.Under his leadership, La Colombe rose to international acclaim, being listed among The World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

In 2010, Luke struck out on his own and opened The Test Kitchen, which went on to become South Africa’s most celebrated restaurant. From there, his success continued with the opening of sister venues such as The Pot Luck Club in 2011, now located in the silo of the Old Biscuit Mill- serving small plates with Asian fusion and Cape Malay influences. The panoramic skyline views from there, spanning Table Mountain, the city, and the coastline, are hard to beat. This was followed by The Shortmarket Club in central Cape Town, offering a brasserie-style menu, and the refined Salsify at The Roundhouse, co-founded with chef Ryan Cole in 2018 (who took full ownership in 2021).

The Maldon Oysters. Image courtesy of The Pot Luck Club 

Through all these ventures Luke has created not only restaurants but also the careers of many chefs who now lead kitchens of their own across South Africa. A prime example of his dedication to nurturing talent is TTK (The Test Kitchen)Fledglings (also at the Old Biscuit Mill), which he founded with his wife, Sandalene Dale-Roberts. It’s the restaurant I’m fondest of, and one I make a point of visiting each time I’m in Cape Town. Fledglings is both a restaurant and a training initiative, providing access to the hospitality industry and skills development for people without formal chef or front-of-house qualifications. It operates as a working restaurant, where the trainees, or “fledglings”, are mentored by experienced professionals from Luke’s group of restaurants. It’s always a joy to see the enthusiastic trainees buzzing around the open kitchen while you dine.

I am unsure how his pop up at The Waldorf Hilton came about. Perhaps it was just appealing to Chef Roberts to set up a short stint back in his home country. Either way it certainly saves diners the cost of a flight to Cape Town. Judging by its extended run into the new year, it seems the pop-up has been very well received.

We ventured there for dinner this week. Despite having lived in London for many years, I had never actually stepped inside the Waldorf, though I’ve often admired its handsome façade and dapper doormen. The Pot Luck pop-up occupies the hotel’s main restaurant, Homage. The Monkey Bar next door, which would ordinarily serve Pot Luck’s inventive cocktail list using house-infused cordials and seasonal ingredients, was closed that evening - but we were able to order our drinks in the restaurant while we looked through the menu. The cocktail list offered intriguing combinations, and I settled, somewhat cautiously, on the Thai Green Curry Martini, which turned out to be surprisingly good.

Roast beetroot tartare and the peanut coconut curry, The Pot Luck Club. Image credit MTotoe

The restaurant’s high ceilings, ornate details, and grand columns make it a beautiful room despite the slightly unsightly lit white trees decorated for Christmas. Dinner was immaculate as was the service. The menu is well designed, and one is guided through dishes by symbols for – umami, salty, sweet, sour, and fusion.

We began with a small boule of the sourdough bread served with excellent quality butter, olives and baba ghanoush for dipping. The Maldon Oysters came with an Asian touch of Passion Fruit Nuoc Chãm, fine slices of spring onion and grated coconut - a clever combination of toppings but I would have liked a little more acidity. The bite-sized fish tacos were a delightful and they kitchen kindly substituted aubergine for one of them.  

Several dishes easily adapt to vegetarian versions with simple ingredient swaps. I rarely pass up a beef tartare (served here with a Bloody Mary dressing), but glowing reviews persuaded me to try the roast beetroot tartare. Accompanied by tofu and macadamia purée and topped with crisp strings of sweet potato, it was one of the best vegetarian dishes I’ve ever had.

Smoked Beef fillet on the menu served with Black Pepper and Truffle Café au Lait, The Pot Luck Club. Image credit MTotoe.

The peanut coconut curry is on the menu as a pork belly dish or a vegetarian dish of broccolini. As my dining partner was vegetarian, we went with the broccolini, a choice that was no sacrifice at all. The broccolini was perfectly cooked al dente, with a light yet robustly spicy curry sauce and topped with mint leaves, fine slivers of red onion, coconut and red chilli, lifting the dish with freshness.

Chef Roberts, though English, has been in South Africa long enough to have embraced the Braai (barbeque) culture. On the menu he features the “Smoked Beef fillet on the menu served with Black Pepper and Truffle Café au Lait” - his signature dish which is rich smoky and indulgent. While the taste of truffle in the generous serving of sauce wasn’t as pronounced as it usually is, the sauce itself was superb. The steak is served on its own, so it’s best to order side, the chickpea and goat’s cheese fries worked beautifully.

Mango and sago pudding, The Pot Luck Club. Image credit MTotoe.

We ended with a mango and sago pudding, a dish with roots in Southeast Asia and a personal childhood favourite. Needless to say, I left very happy indeed. Whether you dine on Chef Dale-Roberts’ menus here in London or back in Cape Town, disappointment is simply not on the menu.

Click here for a visual preview. 

Location: The Waldorf Hilton, Aldwych, London WC2B 4DD Website:  tasteofwaldorf.co.uk Instagram:@potluckclubldn

  Review by Natascha Milsom