Retro-chic French flair and sumptuous gourmet coffee experiences define the Coco Safar Café in Cape Town. Visiting the South African establishment now includes a chance to savor the sweet creations of Head Pastry Chef Carmen Rueda Hernandez. With a culinary pedigree that includes training under renowned pastry chef Oriol Balaguer and a stint in France where she furthered her education under the eye of Olivier Bajard, Hernandez is widely regarded as an exciting addition to Coco Safar.

Hernandez spent time honing her skills in Roses, Spain, where she worked at Restaurant El Bulli in 2011 — later holding the position as chef de partie at The Fat Duck in Bray England. She later returned to The Fat Duck to work with celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal as part of the Fat Duck Experimental Kitchen team.

Located in the center of Cape Town’s Atlantic Seaboard, the couture espresso and patisserie is the flagship address, planned as a global franchise. Designed to provide an “immersive haute experience,” the café offers a selection of products handcrafted on the premises, including pâtisserie, gelato, viennoiserie, chocolates, tonic water, coffee and rooibos cold brews. There’s also a wide selection of Nespresso-compatible specialty coffee and rooibos compostable capsules. Hernandez will contribute her knowledge and training at the molecular level to the café’s non-alcoholic culinary menu and botanical mixology program.