His cheffing experience includes high profile events at top hotels and restaurants in Europe, New Zealand and more recently executive chef at Hartford House in the Midlands. With such a culinary portfolio Constantijn Hahndiek certainly knows his truffles
A Capetonian who “fell in love with KZN”, Constantijn Hahndiek recently established a sister company to Sagra Foods, a Cape Town based distributor of premium food products, opening premises in Cornubia. It’s an ambitious move given our economic climate, not to mention the fierce competition in the food industry.
Nevertheless, he feels the company has growth potential in the KZN market: “Sagra Food and Wine (more commonly known as Sagra Foods) was established 25 years ago in Cape Town and has since grown to be South Africa’s leading importer and distributor of premium food products to the restaurant and hotel industry. We’ve spent a while now establishing a strong foundation in KZN. What differentiates us from our competitors is our passion and desire to uplift the culinary scene as opposed to simply selling commodities for the kitchen. We take it further by not only showcasing our products to the chefs, we also work with them on their dishes, providing advice where needed. All our people in the sales departments of Sagra Foods have formal kitchen experience with the majority having worked overseas.
“We import from France, Italy and Spain as well as sourcing quality foods from local, smaller enterprises. We’ll be stocking around 150 lines at our Cornubia warehouse but can also offer about 750 products via our head office in Cape Town. We have an exceptionally strong procurement team, able to source many additional products for our clients.”
With Cape Town being known for its vibrant culinary industry, we asked Constantijn how he felt Durban was going to rate in the demand for high-end food products. “Unfortunately, Durban is often perceived as Cape Town’s ‘ugly step-sister’ but what I’ve seen in the last year has really been inspirational and I believe that in the next few years we should see more KZN based restaurants being appreciated nationally. We’ll maintain our core business fundamentals but we have the ability to tweak as required being a smaller operation than Cape Town (for now!).
“We have much more flexibility plus the ability to open up our warehouse for chefs which can be used as an upmarket ‘Cash and Carry’. Our chefs in KZN are receiving more experience, and the desire to be more adventurous, and this has filtered down to the customers which is fantastic for our industry.”
Think rare truffles, 20-year aged balsamic vinegar, frogs legs, quails, quail’s eggs, fresh live scallops from Norway, molecular flavoured pearls, drizzles, seasonings – it seems there is no limit to what the company can source. “We’re excited that we are now able to offer the world famous Cacao Barry Chocolate – very popular with pastry chefs,” says Constantijn.
“Locally sourced foods include artisanal cheeses, olive oil, smoked trout, charcuterie, preserves and spreads among many others. From a local perspective we try to partner with smaller artisan manufacturers. We have managed to grow some of these producers into serious businesses that now predominately produce for Sagra Foods.”
While their market is primarily geared towards hotels and restaurants, the warehouse is also open to the public.
“We are currently available mornings only and/or by appointment. We want the home chef to feel welcome in our space. We are also happy to email a comprehensive list of our products and prices on request.”
031 944 8333 tijn@sagrafoods.com