Why would one decide to swap the buzz and glamour of a bustling metropolis for a small Aberdeenshire village tucked away in the middle of nowhere?
Perhaps this might seem a rather peculiar choice for some.
Add having to jet 9,000 miles and spend more than 16 hours travelling to do so, and the number of people willing to make the move will probably drop even further.
But for Cape Town-born Tamarin Van Zyl, the journey from her South African home to Ballater was a “dream come true”.
In her 24-year-long career as a chef, Tamarin has done it all – from training aspiring young cooks at Jamie Oliver’s London restaurant Fifteen to dishing out fancy hors d’oeuvres in luxury hotels.
She has even had a stint in one of the top wildlife reserves in the world, where her usual lunch-break sights would be rhinos, giraffes and elephants grazing in the back yard.
And yet, the new Balmoral Arms chef beams with joy when she speaks about the peaceful streets, the little family-owned shops and welcoming people of Ballater.
While the Deeside village might not have exotic animals roaming about the riverside golf course, Tamarin says her new venture in the north-east is “all she has ever wanted”.
In an exclusive interview with The P&J, the head chef reveals:
- How she turned down a fancy new job in Zimbabwe for the chance to live and work in Ballater – and why
- Why she decided to settle down in Scotland and what her favourite things about the Aberdeenshire village are
- What people can expect from her new Balmoral Arms menu
- And what is the one traditional Scottish dish she is still to try
Who is Tamarin Van Zyl?
If you ask Tamarin to describe herself in one sentence, the answer will most certainly revolve around her love for food and travelling.
More than 25 years since she first embarked on her culinary odyssey, she can’t imagine her life without the sound of rattling crockery and sizzling pans.
Balmoral Arms is her latest adventure in a sterling career that has taken her all across the globe.
It might not be the most glamorous one, but it is one “close to her heart”, she says.
I meet Tamarin at the hotel’s homely reception room exactly a year after she took on the reins of the kitchen.
With the fire quietly crackling next to us, the 43-year-old begins to tell me how her love for cooking came about.
“I actually never had the inkling to become a chef,” Tamarin recalls.
“I think the first time it crossed my mind was at a university exhibition I went to when I was a teenager…
“Little did I know that only five years later it would become such a passion of mine that I couldn’t imagine being anything else.
“I’ve tried and it’s failed. I would always very quickly come back to this industry.
“Being a chef is not a job, it’s a passion that you give everything into – it’s helped me travel the world, it’s helped me find my partner and become the person I am today.”
All roads lead to… Ballater
After that monumental university exhibition, Tamarin went on to study at the Institute of Culinary Arts, rated as South Africa’s best chef school and one of the top three in the world.
And it snowballed from there.
The list of world-renowned restaurants and venues she has worked for is almost as big as her smile when she recalls the “brilliant and rewarding” experience each has been.
This includes luxury resort Le Quartier Francais in Franschhoek, Jamie Oliver’s former flagship restaurant Fifteen and well-known hospitality brands like Hilton and Hyatt.
One the biggest highlights of her career, however, is working at the internationally acclaimed safari lodges Singita, nestled in the wilderness of Mpumalanga.
In 2023, Tamarin left her last job at the Marriott Hotel with the ambitions to move to Zimbabwe and help open new luxury lodges.
Or at least that was the plan…
‘I’ve travelled the world – but Ballater is the place to be’
Having grown up with several Highlanders and keen pipers in her family, Tamarin has always felt a draw to Scotland.
And when the job at Balmoral Arms came up, it was “just an opportunity she and her partner couldn’t pass up” – moving to Ballater was “somehow written in the stars”.
“Ballater picked us if you ask me,” Tamarin smiles.
“We loved working in London, but I’ve always had an image of settling down in a small town, getting to know everybody and creating that home away from home for us.
“And when we began to consider putting down roots in Scotland, the Ballater job came up.
“It’s funny… It was like the universe guided us here.”
What does Tamarin like most about Ballater?
Tamarin had never been to Ballater before taking on the job, and she admits her knowledge of Scotland was limited to the “general information everyone knows”.
But the moment she set foot in the Royal Deeside village, she knew instantly this is where she wants to settle down.
“This is genuinely what I’ve wanted my whole life,” Tamarin beams as she takes a glance through the window at the frosty square outside.
“Everything in Ballater is just magical – the village with the mountain tops dusted with snow, the remarkable community which has been so kind and welcoming to us.
“People just stop you on the street and start chatting to you over buying groceries, and suddenly you realise 30 minutes have passed and you’ve shared your life stories.
“I love that. I love that sense of belonging that we get here, and for us right now, Ballater is the place to be.”
‘I want to integrate that Ballater community feel into our menu’
Naturally, one of her favourite things about Ballater is the wide range of quality local produce that is now right on her doorstep.
And she has big plans about how she can incorporate all of them in her new menu, which will be an infusion of both Scottish and South African flavours.
Tamarin has already made some tweaks, replacing the staple bread and butter with Malva pudding – a traditional South African dish similar to Sticky Toffee Pudding.
But she says she is keen to explore and experiment even further as she gets to know more parts of the Highland scenery and culture.
As if dozens of new recipes are now racing through her head, she says with a chuckle: “I’m literally like a kid in a candy store when all of the local produce starts coming in.
“There’s nothing better than opening a nice pot of fruit, getting that fresh bread from the bakery down the road, and the venison from the butcher who has been here for years.
“This is my ultimate goal – to integrate that community feel into our menu, source as much as we can from the local shops and then give it a little bit of a South African twist.
“And the more we travel across Scotland, the more we see and the more we taste, the more we’re going to mix and combine those flavours.”
Does the Balmoral Arms chef have a favourite Scottish dish?
Has she tried any traditional Scottish dishes herself is the ultimate question, though?
Tamarin doesn’t even stop to consider it and immediately replies “haggis and black pudding” with a huge grin on her face.
“I must admit, I was surprised at how delicious it is,” she laughs.
“You just need to not think about what exactly it is.”
And while she has come to fully adopt the countryside Scottish ways, there is one thing she is still to try…BUTTERIES.
Fortunately, there is nice wee local baker just across the street from us – and we end our chat with a promise she would run and get one first thing.
My only regret is that I won’t be there to see her reaction when she takes her very first bite of that sweet and salty wonder.
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