Brian Ferry and Last Suppers

Neil Pendock in the last Sunday Times described me as “the Brian Ferry of the restaurant scene” and I honestly don’t know if its an allusion to one of his songs or my sartorial verve. I can only imagine the former, and will have to re-immerse myself in some Avalon.  He went on to discuss the closing of Platine in Cape Town, which I had just reviewed for Wine Magazine, my review unfortunately coming out as it closed. A real pity it did, as I describe in the full review, posted here in case you are interested in hits from the past…

Platine

Platine is a mature restaurant in a city with very few. For all its charms, Cape Town is gastronomically still a (promising) teenager. Back in the day, when I used to work at the CPI House directly opposite Platine, the existence of this cosmopolitan restaurant with its high quality cooking right on my doorstep would have suited my visions of Cape Town being modern and chic: the new Sydney, the African Barcelona.

But Cape Town is at heart still a curious tavern of the seas, not ultra-sophisticated but rather earthily sensual, over-whelming in its natural attractions, and youthful – also in its restaurant culture. This is a challenge for places with the mature disposition of Platine, a discreet, rather serious dining experience where the emphasis is on the plate through a menu that is described as “modern French cuisine” on their website.

Chef Matthew Kneipp and co-owner and host Catherine Calcott-Stevens clearly have a vision of Cape Town as the modern, chic city. They came here after working in Australia and the UK, where Kneipp was senior sous-chef at Marco Pierre White’s L’Escargot. But, unfortunately, Cape Town seems to be largely indifferent to Platine’s charms. On each of my three visits, it has been emptier than it deserves to be. Perhaps it’s because Platine is an unassuming restaurant in a city that celebrates the sexy and sea-viewed, but, open a good few months now, it has yet to be visited by many of my food-loving friends. Even worse, many don’t even know it exists.

The interior of this double storey townhouse with its Oregon pine floors and large rooms takes itself rather seriously in restrained monochromatic hues of taupe and sober browns – making you feel like either a city banker or an extra in a European interiors magazine. Table cloths are linen and decked with good quality flatware and glassware. Most certainly a by-product of how quiet they are, the service tends to be too plentiful (something I never thought possible in Cape Town) and rather anxious, but the menu knowledge evidenced by Calcott-Stevens, who is always on the floor is very good.

A symptom of their “wrong city” predicament shows in the fact that they used exclusively to offer a chef’s menu with variations of three or four courses, with or without wine, but have now defaulted to the usual à la carte. Even now, the menu is pared down and focussed; as is the wine list with its well-selected, individualistic options that display keen interest on the part of the owners. The chief varieties are covered, and prices are friendly with many whites between R100 and R150 and reds under R200. There is also a selection of Champagne, including vintage bottles, and Cape ports by the glass.

On the menu, Kneipp does a marvellous job of making the food sound telegraphically appetising and his visual interpretation on the plate is highly accomplished. This is a chef of sure skill and experience, and you’d pay a good deal more for this experience anywhere else in the world. Meats are succulent, fish is delicate, sauces are vibrant with flavour. Velouté is creamy but not unctuous and desserts are suitably decadent, plus the coffee is very good. Yet, measured strictly, there are niggles. While the quail breast was moist, the ravioli of confit quail was starchy and dominated by raisins that would have been better as bit players, while the welcome hazelnut flavour stood on the sidelines. The lovely angelfish was chaperoned by heavily-panned herb gnocchi instead of light clouds; and a green olive sauce (part of the appeal in ordering the duck) turned out merely to be sliced pieces of naked olive.

But objections like these only serve to indicate the high level of cuisine that is being explored here. Platine should be high on your list if you care for good, modern food – and if you share a vision of a more contemporary city.

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