Cornuti now has three locations: Johannesburg, Plettenberg Bay and this, the new Knysna operation at the Heads, where Paquita’s used to be. This has to be one of the world’s finest settings: the sea pulling and pushing between the twin sentinels, the sound of water on rock, decks perched right on these rocks, sunlight… this Cornuti has a light and airy sea-house feel, wood panelled, stretching down along the rocks. The decks are the business on a fair weather day, while inside is rather plain (with a lacklustre middle “passage” room).
The menu is dominated by the extensive pizza listing, there are also pasta options, and a few regular (steak, seafood) alternatives – and it is best to stick to pizza as these are at least dependable though nothing special – while the pasta is poor and other options are plain. Pizza costs R75 and up, with pastas a similar price, so you are paying for the setting rather than quality. Service is bouyant, with a touch of upsell. And on a last note, if the local rep for Illy coffee is reading, please hurry on over – they are making the most appalling coffee with your brand on it.
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12 Comments
A group of us ate here a few Sundays ago and it was without doubt the worst dining experience most of has ever had.
The waiter was completely incompetent, most of the time we went to order the drinks ourselves, as this was much less painful.
The pizzas were ok; the calamari I ordered was the worse tasting meal that I have ever had. I spent 12 in boarding school and not even there I tasted anything as disgusting as this calamari. I only managed one piece and got the manager to remove the plate, I asked her to have a taste but we didn’t see her again.
Carnuti’s in Knysna will never see me again!
I had lunch at Cornuti Knysna recently (Easter holidays) and must strongly disagree with both the review and posted comment. I had the calamari- it was fresh, well cooked and delicious. My partner had a pizza which was also very good (R46 odd, JPR seems to have inflated prices somewhat, not sure why).I finished off with an expresso coffee- crema was good. The location is magnificent, my children played in the natural rock pools for hours. I could not fault the restaurant in any way and will visit it again on my next holiday to Knysna.
Thanks for the view Louisa. I am not misrepresenting the cost of (my) pizza however. It may also interest you to know that an Illy rep did visit post my comment, so it may be that the coffee has improved. Perhaps someone can verify?
Went for dinner last night and managed to get a table next to the fire in the smoking area unfortunately (for some reason they had not lit the fire in the non-smoking section even though it was about 10 degrees outside). Prices were on the high side although there is one pizza for R46, the rest were R70 plus. We enjoyed our pizza’s however for price they were over-priced. We have visited a few other places in the area and most had a winter menu with winter prices.
I prefer the one in Plett – has more atmosphere.
We visited Cornuti in the June holidays and were bitterly disappointed. East Head cafe was closed in the winter (Cornuti’s competition across the parking lot). If we hadn’t promised the kids a milkshake we would have turned round and gone straight home. As a person who has a holiday home in Knysna, we have seen the restuarants at this location come and go every 5 years or so. Cornuti will probably ones that don’t last even 2. The seating arrangements were diabolical, to pay R80 plus for a pizza is absurd and the service was slow. Yes, the rock pools for the kids is nice, but you can enjoy this area jsut as well with them rather than being at the resaurant.
Great Job Guys
I have known your work since JHB days, you used to have drinks at my pub across the road (Tuckaways) I often visited Cornuti in Jhb /Plett and I am SO glad you have opened up here in Knysna.
I think the new place is great, thank the lord Paquitas building is gone, the new place does justice to the view.
I think your prices might be a little steep for the average local but I believe they are justified, the pizza and salads are fantastic and your choice of wines are great.
To all of the complainants out there, this is Knysna come and relax, be realistic about the service especialy in newer ventures as they have little staff to choose from and usually have to sift through a bit of opportunistic rabble before they find the pearls.
Kind Regards
Mark
PS: When you come down to Knysna, pop in to visit me at my new venture – The Old Watermill Restaurant & Pub in Pleadge square.
out of curiosity… does anyone knows what “Cornuti” means in italian?
it literally means: “men whose wives have been unfaithful” (or cuckolds, as Shakespeare would say)!
Trudy recently wrote to me with this comment:
“After living in Johannesburg for most of our lives, where we regularly frequented Cornuti, we relocated to Knysna two years ago. We were thrilled to welcome Cornuti to The Heads (a mere few blocks away from our doorstep) and looked forward to spending at least one evening a week there as we had done in Johannesburg.
It can now honestly be said that Cornuti has let Knysna and itself down dreadfully. Not only are the prices horrendously expensive especially the wine but the service is non existent. We have always been regular restaurant goers and I have to say that I cannot recall experiencing such abominable service at any other restaurant ever. Knysna is known for is small community type lifestyle and news inevitable spreads fast and when restaurants are being discussed Cornuti just doesn’t ever feature in a favourable light. One would think that it would have improved over time but having given them more than a year to get it right we have scratched Cornuti permanently from our restaurant list as have many Knysna residents.
What a crime that such a magnificent setting, perhaps the best in the world, is so wasted. Maybe even the high prices could be forgiven if the service was superb. Come on Cornuti get your act together, if Ile de Pain can get it SO right why cant you? Our sincere thanks to Ile de Pain for our wonderful twice weekly experiences at your restaurant – you never disappoint.”
This comment came to me from Sarah Rathbone:
“A most beautiful location undermined by teeth-chatteringly awful dining experience: 3 hour wait, confused “front-of house” response/justification for inadequacy of service, followed by mediocre pizza and diabolical pasta. How sad for Knysna, Cornuti Management and Kitchen’s message to our dining group on 6/10/09 was that its OK to leverage location and holiday period surge as valid justification for poor food and service. Sarah and 8 others from Knysna, Switzerland, Johannesburg and Australia.”
We visited Cornuti in January 2010, the prices are a bit steep, but the veiw is breathtaking and we had divine wine. It was our waiter’s first night on the job and well done young man.
about this wine, since our visit we couldn’t find it again and can’t remember the name, think it was ‘fox’ something if you can please email me your winelist I would much appriciate it.
I preferred it when it was Paquitas. The food was mediocre but you were’t overcharged and the service was good. The new shop fitting may be trendy but the old setup seemed more appropriate for the location. Now it just feels, (and most probably is) a tourist trap.
Hallo. we were 4 people on Sunday 7 March 2010. The Calamari was not good, I’m doing Chamberlains and had a terrible night on the loo.