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What Happens on the Day
A whole lamb is a five to seven hour cook, so the chef is on site long before your guests are. Here is exactly how the day runs from the marinade the night before through to the equipment leaving, what we need from you on site, what we do not supply, and how Cape Town weather changes the plan.
The timeline
A whole lamb is a five to seven hour cook. Here is what that actually looks like from your side, using a 19:00 serving time as the example.
| Time | What happens |
|---|---|
| Day before | Meat collected, trimmed, marinated and refrigerated overnight |
| ~13:00 | Chef arrives, assembles the spit, starts the fire |
| ~14:00 | Lamb goes on. Fire settles to working temperature |
| 14:00–18:30 | Turning and basting on the hour; coals managed continuously |
| ~18:30 | Meat comes off and rests. Sides brought up to temperature |
| 19:00 | Carving begins on your cue |
| ~20:30 | Equipment broken down, site cleared, chef leaves |
The single most common question about that running order is how long a spit braai takes — five to seven hours for a whole lamb, and rather less for chicken.
What we need from you
- Somewhere to put the fire — about three metres square, level, on ground not decking
- Shelter from strong wind if the site is exposed
- A tap within reasonable reach
- Somewhere to park and unload without carrying a spit 200 metres
No electricity needed. We are self-contained.
Those last three are the ones that actually vary by address. Old gardens behind spit braai catering in the Southern Suburbs tend to have the space but a narrow side passage and a low oak canopy to get the spit through; on the Atlantic Seaboard the constraint is usually loading and finding three metres of actual ground rather than a balcony; and out on the West Coast we plan wind shelter as standard rather than hoping for a still afternoon.
What we do not do
Worth being clear so nothing is a surprise: we do not supply tables, linen, crockery, cutlery, glassware or waiters. We are the kitchen. For a wedding your coordinator or venue handles all of that, and they will expect to.
The smell is part of it. Guests arriving to a lamb that has been turning for four hours is an effect no menu card produces. Put the spit where people will walk past it, not behind the garage.
Weather
Rain is not a problem — the fire needs cover, and a carport, gazebo or open garage does the job. Wind matters more than rain, because it makes the fire impossible to hold steady. If your site is very exposed, tell us and we will plan for it.
More on what the chef does, or get a quote for your date.
Everything above is what the chef does. If you are weighing that against running the fire yourself, spit braai hire or catering puts the two side by side with the costs.