South Africa celebrates a proud moment as Ash Valenzuela-Heeger receives the prestigious Michelin Guide’s Young Chef Award for 2025.
Flying the South African flag high: Ash Valenzuela-Heeger wins Michelin Guide’s Young Chef Award for 2025.
Picture: Ash Valenzuela-Heeger/Instagram
Now based in Birmingham, UK, Ash runs Riverine Rabbit in Stirchley with her wife, Erin. The award-winning restaurant, which also received a Michelin Bib Gourmand this year, showcases Ash’s bold, original cooking influenced by her South African heritage and Asian flavors.
Ash’s journey to this milestone has been anything but ordinary. Moving to the UK in 2020 during the pandemic, she left behind her Cape Town restaurant and started on a new chapter with Erin, according to BBC. The pair began with pop-ups across Birmingham before settling in Stirchley, drawn by its vibrant community of independent businesses.
Celebrating British ingredients with a global touch
Riverine Rabbit is an intimate dining space, seating just 12 guests, but its reputation has far outgrown its size. Ash has embraced the challenge of cooking with British ingredients, experimenting with scallops, oily fish, and local beef, which she says have been “fun” to work with. Still, she admits missing the unique flora of South Africa.
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Michelin praised Ash’s cooking as “big on flavor,” recognizing her ability to merge global influences into dishes that are inventive yet approachable. Ash describes the award as “a nice pat on the back,” while Erin credits their success to consistent, incremental improvement, saying, ‘We just make things a little bit better every day.’
A milestone moment
Receiving the award, Ash expressed gratitude and humor:
‘I am not sure how young I am anymore, but I’m pleased!’
Though Riverine Rabbit is smaller than Ash’s previous venture in Cape Town, the couple is content. ‘We’re very happy just serving our 12 guests,’ Erin shared, balancing her role at the restaurant with her career as a materials scientist.
Reflecting on their journey, Ash said, “Leaving a continent is a very hard thing to do. Hats off to anyone who does it.” But their connection to Stirchley and the joy of discovering new flavors have made it all worthwhile.
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