Rossouws Restaurants

Excited about eating at this highly-rated city spot again, last night was not what I had hoped. First off was their unsatisfactory reservations system. I left a message requesting a table, missed their return call, called back only to find that I did not have a reservation and had to make another for a time that was less suitable. Of course I may not even have got a table. The place looked pretty shabby (though it’s always gone for that inner-city cool “grunge” thing) and there was a malodour wafting in and out all evening (which they probably had no control over to be fair). Service was confident but perfunctory and often missing, on other tables aperitif glasses remained on the table way into mains. My starter duck was stringy and tough, but they dealt with this complaint well; while my lamb main was very good. One of the strengths of the experience here is the highly creative plating; while the confusing menu, with adjectives spilt under a heading like “lamb,” makes it hard to know what you’re in for. The night was summed up by my friend D’s response to his “chocolate landscape” dessert that he hardly touched: “I’ve got agoraphobia.”

The new and improved Willoughby’s could be the most exciting place to eat within this tourist mecca, what they lack in harbour views they make up for in a wide-ranging Asian menu and good quality across the board. There’s also a buzz and bustle, a sense of being in the midst of city life, that one does not easily get in Cape restaurants. No reservations can mean frustrating waits at peak times, however. Another area of contention is their wine list that’s dominated by one player - not that this is unusual for restaurants, but it’s a practise I don’t like, because it helps the big monied players to strangle lists.

Lunch paired to the Champagne Delamotte and Salon wines was simply superb yesterday. Presented on beautiful plates (many clear to highlight the food), the flavours were precise and well-considered. Poached oyster with black radish; light cured salmon with grapefruit cells and tiny cubes of pannacotta with onion seed; a sweetpea risotto made perfectly and topped with frog’s legs; double-herbed springbok loin with a carrot puree and apricot and nut; a roasted pear with orange and vanilla flavours and mascarpone. Every dish a delight.

Told that this seafood specialist deserves a place in the guide, so here I sit, waiting for my dinner companion. Plumstead is not an area that I often get to, but La Grotto is clearly popular with locals, tables calling the waitress by name. It’s a big room, not a grotto but a hall, with a smoking alcove at the back leading into the kitchen you walk through to the bathrooms. Tables in blue and white cheque, wooden chairs, nautical paraphenalia on the walls, all looking more like it belongs to an old fishing town (almost like a John Steinbeck local). The waiter is very urbane and is clearly not doing this to pay his varsity fees. The wine list, with its small selection of corporate wines was the first hint of the style of the food - dated, but at the prices, welcome value. The seafood platter (R89) is generous and well-cooked (except for previously frozen, now floury, prawns) and featured little touches like a marinara for the mussels and pieces of hake in good batter. Chips weren’t fresh and crisp though. M’s grilled calamari fine, his fish soup good, my snails tender and appropriately slathered in buttery garlic - and not in those snail ramekins but a comforting bowl. I’d be back if I lived in the area, but go when they’re busy for improved ambience.

A weekend revisit to this spectacularly situated seafood and grill spot in the harbour was a great success. Over the last while (since they installed a sushi team) the menu has been more and more Asian inflected, and also focussed. So it’s moved from a typical SA sea-side grill towards a more modern/global incarnation of this type. The sushi is good, and on most days the seafood too. Presentation is fresh and pretty, and the food also presents itself as being fresh and highly edible. Service can struggle when they’re busy (whale season) but it’s generally a well-operated restaurant and better than you’d expect for its glorious setting.

There’ve been some updates and physical clean-ups at this well-established Paarl eaterie. Floors are sanded and walls painted, there’s a new section for conferencing and an attractive bar area. There’s also a patio section on the street and a pizza oven newly built. Otherwise, the attraction of its garden out back is still high, as is the attention to wines - many by the glass and decent knowledge on the floor (the owner a sommelier). Service is a strong point here. The menu is a collection of Mediterranean mezzes and classic mains with a grill section, along with French bistro options. On this last visit the quality of the mezze platter was not as impressive as its range and portion generosity; while the rib-eye was well-cooked and served with frites and a side salad. Marc’s remains a comfortable option with its heart in the right place, the food down-the-line solid, not stellar.

I don’t like to go to these much anymore - they tend not to be a true reflection of the kitchen on a day-to-day basis - but I am very glad I went to this one last night on the instigation of The Hungry Man (though my observation on not being true of the usual style or standard applies). What was great about this chef’s table was that the kitchen created and artfully executed a truly interesting menu: consomme of guinea fowl; black ravioli stuffed with tomato; salmon trout on a concasse of greens; pig’s trotters “de Pierre Kaufmann”; and a pannacotta.

Of course, the highlight was the trotters - earthy, slightly spicy, and stuffed with mushrooms and with that fantastic gelatinous texture. In a world of venison noisettes with berry sauce this was really something memorable. The black ravioli too was different, sauceless, just drizzled with olive oil, all about textures. And while I am no crusader for salmon trout, this was a good as it gets.

If only Lafayette could bring some of this into their regular menu - which is good but does not represent the individuality of last night’s offerings. Still, this is a place that exudes welcome personality in our increasingly flat world, and THM and I walked into the night with Cheshire cat grins.

It’s rather awkward setting, on a road off the main road that no-one really knows about in Claremont (it’s where the BMW dealer is) you’ll find this sushi and Japanese specialist. Don’t go for the ambience (though there is worse, it’s a cavernous place that needs many more people than are usually in here) or the wine list, but for the dim sum at lunch (which is excellent) and the high-quality sushi (a contender for the best in CT). Don’t bother with the other meals, though the tempura is good, and there are great “lunch box” specials. If you like the newer fusion style sushi, chef Eddie is your man.

A surprise find in the heart of the city, this ultra-chic, modern bistro is already a favourite with business - the waiters are running! Cool and sophisticated in soothing greens, natural wood and mosiacs, featuring a lounge with fireplace, private rooms, bar-deli seats and a zen-like courtyard, this is a beautiful space, though quite cold on this winter’s day. A lighter menu for quick meals (with house-baked bread), and short list of bistro options. Service charming. Quality of the chicken and parsnip soup is superb, fresh and flavourful, with chunks of bird; while the steak frites with bearnaise was accomplished - great bearnaise (rare find) and good steak, my only quibble being the not-crisp, although hand-cut fries. No time for dessert, more’s the pity, because they clearly pride themselves on their cakes etc. This place is a winner.

Curious place this. It’s clearly been through a few changes of ownerships, plus it’s swallowed the venerable Cento Valle alongside. Now it carries on, occupying a large, three-sectioned space; where the end room is the climbing plant and Mediterranean-themed old Cento, the middle the smoking and the third the non-smoking section of the very bare, hard surfaced and casual bistro that Bell Pepper now is. The menu ranges a few colourful dishes where exuberant flavour is the order of the day (Moroccan lamb chops; seasonal salads with berries) and a long list of specials that enhance this modern theme - flavours from around the world given a ramp up: rump steak in a Jack Daniels and pepper sauce being the example I tried. The food is tasty and well-prepared, with bold and striking flavours. Plus the wine list is fun, including unusual local wines and some Chilean picks, making this a fun option for its quirky individuality. It does however come across as a committed amateur operation in many ways and the ambience is rather stark on a moderately empty night - committed amateur being a positive for me, but not for people who like slick seamlessness.