May 24 - JHB North

Love at first bite
Got a sweet tooth? Allow us to introduce you to your New Best Friend.
Jared Melamed, the talent behind Joburg’s most seriously sumptuous patisserie.
12 Get It Magazine May 24
Jared Melamed is a walking
contradiction. He has slummed it in
the Thai jungle, then lapped up luxury
in Singapore’s Orchard Road. He’s
captivated by the smells, taste and
buzz of food markets, but delights
in sitting down to white tablecloth
service and foie gras. He blasts
hardcore techno while delicately
crafting the kind of French pastries
that are to be savoured one small
mouthful at a time.
Those nuances, he maintains, are
what have made him as a chef, in
spite of receiving no formal training.
“There’s something in my head that
no school could have given me;
something I have gained from 17
years of travelling and tasting in 50
different countries.”
Yes – that’s 50 countries, many of
which were obscure islands, where
Jared worked as a professional
diver to fund his love of culinary
experiences. It all started when, as a
16-year-old, he packed himself off to
Ibiza - without his parents’ permission.
“I cried as soon as I arrived. Imagine
being a teenager, completely alone
in a country where you don’t speak
the language.” Three months later, and
Jared was lunching like a local. The
markets of Barcelona held him in thrall
... the sweets, the meat hanging from
hooks, the buzz, the money changing
hands, the shoppers smiling. He knew
that this was the life he wanted, so
although, as a non-conformist, he
had never enjoyed school, he headed
home to finish up his education and
start real life.
What followed was a whirlwind of
visa runs, passport stamps, stints in
eateries around the world and eating
experiences that have honed his