Chef who lost job during lockdown opens thriving restaurant By Boitumelo Metsing Share Johannesburg - Chef Siyabonga Ngwenya, 29, overcame the adversity of losing his job by starting his own eatery, Yummy Thingz, in Rockville. Ngwenya said he was stressed about job hunting when the idea came about that gave rise to a lucrative business. “After being retrenched in June 2020, I was depressed for almost a month. I was stressed, wondering how I would pay my bills and look after my mother,” he said. “I decided, like many other people, to cook as a way to destress and pass time. I then decided to post pictures of food I made at home and during private events. That’s when people started asking how they could get my food.”