Chef at Summerhill Guest Estate, Cowies Hill, KwaZulu Natal
Chef Johannes Richter is the chef and co-owner of The LivingRoom at Summerhill Guest Estate. The family-owned guesthouse located in Cowies Hill, nestled between the Midlands and Durban in KwaZulu-Natal. Chef Johannes combines the ingredients of the province with his Michelin training to create a constantly evolving, ingredient-driven menu, which sees him in constant collaboration with both nature and his suppliers to showcase the season at its best. His unique approach to cooking, unwavering dedication to sustainability, and relentless pursuit of excellence, rooted in identity, have seen Chef Johannes and The LivingRoom lauded with a host of accolades and recognitions.
Chef Johannes is available for catering for unique corporate functions anywhere in South Africa.
About The LivingRoom at Summerhill Guest Estate
Situated within Summerhill Guest Estate, The LivingRoom is one of the country’s most accoladed dining experiences.
Chef Johannes Richter tells the story of KwaZulu-Natal’s culinary diversity through his use of hyper-endemic ingredients, ancient processes, modern thinking and classic techniques. His sustainably centred fine-dining menu is paired with premium South African wines and exceptional service.
Opening in 2017, The LivingRoom started on the premise of bringing a supper club to life at Summerhill Guest Estate. Johannes, having returned home from abroad with his wife, Johanna, set about opening the soon-to-be fine-dining destination restaurant in Cowies Hill. Johannes runs the kitchen, while Johanna runs the front-of-house and the wine programme.
The Food
The multi-course menu–available as a six or eight-courses – is driven by a hyper-seasonal and endemic approach to cooking.
All ingredients are sourced locally, with a strong focus on sustainability and ethical farming practices.
As the team only work with the freshest produce sourced within a 150km radius, there is a conscious and deliberate effort to create their menu with as low an impact as possible, as well as being off-grid since the end of 2024.
Here, a range of ancient fermentation and preservation techniques are used to “stretch” produce and by- products across seasons–minimising wastage and adding diversity and depth of flavour across the menu.
German-born and Durban-raised, Johannes trained at Michelin-star establishments abroad before returning home to open The LivingRoom. His love of local ingredients and strong ethos in sustainability create a truly unique culinary experience and make him a driving force behind the use of hyper-local produce, indigenous ingredients and Sustainability in South Africa’s top kitchens.
His dishes, predominantly based on three ingredients, allowing these often unheard of, unique and distinctly South African ingredients the opportunity to be showcased at their very best.
Sustainability and seasonality are at the core of everything at The LivingRoom, extending to the team and staff, many of whom come from the local community and have been given the skills and training needed to perform at the highest of international standards.
The Wine
The extensive wine programme overseen by Johanna Richter, offers a well-considered and comprehensive list of premium South African wines.
The menu is available with a pairing option, which sees a choice selection of these wines expertly paired as well as locally sourced ingredients compiled in a well thought through non-alcoholic pairing and, containing in-house syrups, kombucha’s, juices, tonics made in-house and a carefully curated cocktail list.
Chef Johannes Richter
Chef Johannes Richter is the chef and co-owner of The LivingRoom at Summerhill Guest Estate.
German-born and Durban-raised, the chef trained at Michelin-star establishments abroad before returning home to open The LivingRoom. His love of local ingredients and strong sustainable ethos see him combine his classic training with both ancient and modern techniques to celebrate KwaZulu-Natal’s culinary diversity with every dish.
Johannes has been the driving force behind the use of hyper-local produce and indigenous ingredients in South Africa’s top kitchens. His dishes, predominantly based on three ingredients, allow these often unheard-of, unique and distinctly South African elements the opportunity to be showcased at their very best.
Food has always been a passion for Johannes – one which was largely shaped through a childhood spent traveling both within South Africa and into Southern Africa, where he had the opportunity to experience the food markets and farms of the region, learn about local produce, gain an understanding of culinary traditions, and embrace the richness of different food cultures.
This instilled a deep respect and love for local cuisines in the aspirant chef, which continues to this day.
In 2010, while studying for a statistics degree, Johannes decided to pursue his real passion and took up an apprenticeship in the Black Forest region of Germany. It was there that he was classically trained in French cuisine and exposed to a myriad of cooking techniques at Michelin-star standard – where his career as a chef truly began.
He continued to stage abroad, working his way up through the ranks of Michelin-starred restaurants in Germany – most notably Berlin’s three-star Michelin restaurant Rutz – where he met his wife, Johanna.
Johannes and Johanna returned to South Africa in 2017 – now with two young children – and set about joining the family business, Summerhill Guest Estate, and opened The LivingRoom.
His cooking is a true celebration of KwaZulu-Natal’s culinary and cultural diversity and sees him delve into both the ingredients of the region and the nostalgia of growing up within it – both his own and that of his team – creating a dynamic, local, and deeply respectful dining experience.
Chef Johannes combines the ingredients of the province with his Michelin training to create a constantly evolving, ingredient-driven menu, which sees him in constant collaboration with both nature and his suppliers to showcase the season at its best.
When not in the kitchen, Johannes can be found outdoors – whether tending to the gardens, spearfishing, foraging, bow hunting or running. He is currently training for his fourth Comrades Marathon.
His unique approach to cooking, unwavering dedication to sustainability, and relentless pursuit of excellence, rooted in identity, have seen Chef Johannes and The LivingRoom lauded with a host of accolades and recognitions.
Media & Awards
The LivingRoom
- Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant of the Year 2022
- Three Eat Out Stars
- Three plates JHP Gourmet
- Eat Out Woolworths Financial Services Sustainability Award 2023
- Eat Out Woolworths Financial Services Green Star 2025 (previously the Sustainability Award)
- Eat Out Woolworths Financial Services Green Star 2026 (previously the Sustainability Award)
Johannes Richter
- Eat Out Woolworths Chef of the Year 2026
- Eat Out Woolworths Chef of the Year 2025
- Two knives at the internationally recognised Best Chef Awards 2025
- One knife at the internationally recognised Best Chef Awards 2024
- Luxe awards Chef of the year 2022
Collaborations
- Wolfgat x The LivingRoom, Paternoster 2024
- Wandile Mabaso x Johannes Richter 2024
- Ein Prosit (Udine, Italy) 2024
- Wolfgat x Edge x The LivingRoom Cowies Hill & Paternoster 2025
- Wandile Mabaso x Johannes Richter Cowies Hill 2025
- Tresind Studio*** x The LivingRoom Dubai 2025
- Atelier Moessmer*** x The LivingRoom Italy 2025
- 10 Hands Fire Dinner Italy 2025
- Gastromasa Turkey 2025
Contact us
Tel or WhatsApp: +27 63 529 1966
Instagram: @thelivingroomatsummerhill
Email: info@summerhillkzn.com
Physical Address: 9 Belvedale Road, Cowies Hill, Durban
Co-ordinates: -29.826915, 30.892843
S29 ̊ 49.6149′, E030 ̊ 53.5706′