Restaurants come in two broad forms – those that are businesses where the key human parts are exchangeable because the reputation of the place and the brand is larger than the individuals; and those where key persons, usually the owner or the chef, are the business. Being close the wellspring of energy, restaurants that are owner- or chef-operated are often the best of the lot as the fortunes of the business are keenly felt by the person heading it up. There’s also a human touch and connection to the clientèle that more formal restaurants can lack. Over the four years that Higgs and his team, marshalled by sommelier and manager Neil Grant, were at the helm of Rust en Vrede restaurant in Stellenbosch, it became one the country’s finest establishments, due to a number of factors (immaculate surrounds and brilliant cooking being key) but fused by the personality the Higgs and Grant lent the place. When one considers whether Rust en Vrede (the restaurant) will continue to shine, you have to surmise that it will do best if it builds a brand that does not rely chiefly on the personalities of the team (people do come and go) but rather on the centuries-old estate itself – which I am sure it will do. Based on one return visit, the quality, under John Shuttleworth, a chef who was part of Higgs’ team, continues to be excellent. Interestingly, his wife Andrea runs the front of house so they have not lost a personal touch. In the meanwhile, Higgs’ future is unknown while Neil Grant is about to open Burrata, a contemporary restaurant in Woodstock’s Old Biscuit Mill.
| Welcome to the dining journal! Here you'll find updates on the recent dining experiences of the editor, JP Rossouw. Please note that these are time-bound impressions of one visit, not the official review. If you'd like to review one of the restaurants, click here. Comments are welcome, but we reserve the right to edit/remove them. |  |
Changing of the Guard
Takumi, Cape Town
This elegant sushi specialist occupies a compact space and is decorated in raw wood tones, face brick spaces, dark walls and black chairs for an upmarket and trendy ambience; and one that certainly flags an Asian character. Takumi is the new home to chef Hatsushiro Muraoka, aka “Papa San” who is formerly of Minato fame (as well as being the renowned Asian character in Douglas Green wine advertisements) and this new venture is a great deal more refined than Minato ever was. Minato, indeed, was home to big wine branding and very large chunks of sushi and sashimi, making it the favourite for diners obsessed with large “value” portions. Happily, conveyor belt sushi now satisfies this market.
That is not to say that some of the quirks that made Minato famous have not migrated with Papa-san, however. The menu begins with a list of “house rules” and include the humorous: “No pets, children under 10 or wise guys” and “no debates about who makes the best sushi in town”; as well as the rather more curious “open until owner’s choice” (which in the past has seen the restaurant close unexpectedly early or because someone has overstepped some line). Another quirk is that a 10% tip is automatically added to any and all bills – and in our case the bill was also presented unsolicited and before we had had the chance to order teas. So the customer is not always right here.
On this visit, the service was efficient and overseen by the sprightly “Papa San” himself (in a good, non-confrontational mood). The multi-page menu is stapled in top left corner and ranges through all manner of sushi and sashimi, with many pages of speciality rolls, including the excellent “Super Crunch” (R75) with tempura prawn, avocado, cucumber, spring onion and tempura crumbs. Other unusual offerings include the “Butakatsu” with fried pork, avocado, lettuce and mustard (R60) and a “Hamburger” (R60); while the tuna “Crying Roll” and “Mexican Look” are on my to-try list for the next visit. The small wine list is dominated by the wines of Tokara and this love has also resulted in a tuna and salmon combo roll with that name. The Douglas Green days are over, I guess.
Tempura and noodles also make an appearance, as do a variety of tofu dishes, making Takumi very vegetarian-friendly. The quality of a “Sushi Special” platter (R105) that we sampled was good, as was the value, especially since the larger slice of fish on the sushi rice is still the house style here. The slices of fish envelop and completely hide the chunky balls of rice, even extending to blanket the board on both sides, making single chop-stick motion eating tricky – and though still possible for the dexterous, your mouth is perforce excused from conversation for a good few minutes while you work to chew the bulky morsel. I’ve never had the nerve to ask for smaller portions either, since this is likely to fall foul of one of the house rules.
For: Elegant space; good and well-priced food.
Against: Quirks that may catch you off guard – and call to be sure they’re open.
Simon’s, Groot Constantia
Simon’s, the attractive anytime eatery on the flagship Groot Constantia wine estate, has recently undergone a revival. The new team is marshalled by Rudi Minnaar, who helped engineer such restaurant hits as The Moosehead, Morton’s on the Wharf and Beluga – so there is no shortage of experience in how to draw the crowds. At Simon’s, the space has been picked up: the interior given a warmer feel to match the gigantic fireplace it boasts; while the various lounge and bar spaces have also been upgraded. The very popular patio seats are still to be refurbished, the vineyard views and countryside tranquillity have always made this area the favourite. Most importantly, the menu has been completely overhauled and given a bistro theme (going so far as to use French titles, as in “les salades”). So one gets the French bistro classics like moules, onion soup and confit duck – but you also get “soul food” in the form of Basque half chicken and wild mushroom gnocchi; while sandwiches round out a menu that is sure to please any comer. The portion sizes are very generous and this, with the reasonable prices (mains around R100 and starters R40) make the value very compelling, should the food be good. And a first visit, where all (excepting the Caesar salad) was sound, suggests Simon’s is on a winning wicket. 021 794 1143.
Terroir, Stellenbosch
Chef Michael Broughton has always been a perfectionist, a chef who still cares for the craft of deeply flavoured sauces and intricate technique – so here at Terroir, a setting that exemplifies relaxed country pleasure, the food actually seems to sit at some contrast to the bucolic environment (on a wine farm and alongside a golf course) and the rustic nature of the restaurant’s décor. Outside, concrete patio furniture are best for sunny days, while the interior has a terracotta tiled floor and a reeded ceiling with a casual fireplace – all very low-key, plus the menus are hand-written on blackboards that are brought to the table-side on an easel.
The neatly ironed white linen-bedecked tables are, however, a clue to the kitchen’s serious intent, as is the very organised, courteous and knowledgeable service – achieving just the right balance of information and distance to allow you to order on your own recognisance or easily ask for assistance.
Over previous visits to Terroir, I had always been impressed at the dense flavours that are crammed onto the plates, along with an amazement at the (sometimes overwhelmingly) rich saucing – a sure nod in the direction of classic French cuisine. But over the course of recent years, the kitchen has steadily been making the plates lighter in sheer density, and Broughton has always enjoyed Asian arrangements and flavours, which are intrinsically lighter. Foams and flourishes of the modern kind are used sparingly by the kitchen, but the plates are always elegantly precise. Today, the typical course here presents well-loved combinations and bistro-style classics taken to refined heights.
A recent lunch saw the Asian element exemplified in a starter of battered squid with sweet and sour flavours – very much like a sophisticated Chinese take-out meal (R57). Another starter, a pork pastilla (or pastry, R55) was really neatly presented, a small package of exquisitely intense flavour. A pork belly main course again nodded to the east, this cut into precise batons of meat, then skewered onto kebab sticks (R145) suggesting street food but only as a hint. Line-fish was served with flavours of mushroom and broad bean and asparagus – a number of seasons successfully cohabiting on one plate (R135). To finish, an apple tart – which, along with all the preceding courses, did not put a foot out of step.
Notice is also due to the wine list, which is both well-priced and selected. Led by the wines of the Kleine Zalze estate (which makes excellent Chenin Blanc), there are also wines from a variety of leading Stellenbosch wineries, as well as reserve wines. In sum, it may have a country setting and mien, but this is one of South Africa’s homes of fine cuisine.
For: Bucolic setting and sophisticated cuisine.
Against: Very little, it does lend itself better to daytimes than evenings though.
(As first published in Business Day)
Gaaitjie, Paternoster
Another restaurant that offers cuisine that’s well ahead of the low key suggested by its location is the Paternoster gem called Gaaitjie. Suzi Holtzhausen is the chef-patron here at this “salt water restaurant” that’s as close to the sea as you could possibly get, within an old fisherman’s cottage that’s been converted into a pretty, cosy and very romantic escape from the hurly-burly. There are a few tables inside the two rooms which are filled with just the right amount of distraction in the form of playful décor – images of Victorian sunbathers and Tretchikoff prints – while the mood created by the old white-washed walls, low ceilings and thatch is immensely peaceful. On a sunny day the place to be is on the patio with its open beach and sea vista. The sand and sea are literally right in front of you. And happily, the food is as good as the setting: the menu is fabulously innovative while sticking close to local provenance; fresh seafood being a highlight and not only the usual options of line fish, but also rock-gathered molluscs like limpet and alikreukel. A recent lunch offered up a chilled pea and crayfish soup that was delicious; as were the Saldanha Bay mussels steamed in milk stout with spicy sausage. Quality is uniformly high and the presentation is good; while the wine list rewards with a local selection. Service is charmingly local and the experience is completely seductive.
Wombles, Parktown North
Wombles has a following that’s decades old. Ask people for a list of the five best steakhouses in Gauteng and its name is likely to pop up, closely followed by the rider that it’s rather expensive. Both observations are correct, but what’s missing is how old-school (and rather reassuring) it is, as well as how you stray from grills at your peril.
Signalling the red meat focus, the wine list begins with reds and prices are high, with few red wines below R200. Big names take the floor, with descriptions and vintages. Wines by the glass do get their own wine menu, something that is quite unusual for any restaurant, and welcome. Customers are invited to take a drink in the bar/lounge with its fireplace and cosy penumbral shadow, and throughout the restaurant, low lighting is the norm – making it very cosy and intimate, which feeling is aided by the clubby atmosphere: free standing lamps, ruddy walls and mock Tudor beams, carpeting, linen tablecloths, botanical and animal prints and fake candles on tall holders. The comfortable feel is somewhat jarred by the silly pop music though.
Waiters, wearing chef’s caps and aprons, initially swamp the table with service but if you break their rhythm (by asking for time to chat before ordering) they flake out until you let them take control. Then service then good again, punctuated by the Monty Python-esque manager who opens all communication with a “thank you”.
Crust-free “government” brown bread comes to the table with three butters, regular, garlic, anchovy. Then a travesty of a Caesar salad: iceberg lettuce, insipid dressing, completely flavourless and an insult at R65. Button mushrooms are served with prawns on top, which are tender but tasteless, lacking in seasoning (these at R70).
Hoping for more satisfaction, on to mains: a trio of quails are very plainly cooked and presented, though tasty and moist enough, with roast sweet potato (from the choice of starches, extra at R10 p/p), the quail a princely R150. A fillet on the bone (R170) is cooked accurately, though with a marrow and mushroom sauce that is very raw in flavour, suggesting that it’s best to stick to the basics here and order your meat unadulterated – and indeed the superb sirloin proves it, a very delicious steak at R130 with no sauces or extras.
On this busy Friday, and with a number of big tables and birthday groups (singing waiters bringing to mind an adult Spur) the wait for our main courses was overly long. This, and not being in the mood for more disappointments, led us to excuse ourselves from desserts (which were in any case of the common garden variety: crème brûlée, trio of ice creams, ice cream and chocolate sauce, and all around R50).
For: Clubby, inviting atmosphere
Against: Prices very high for any meal beyond the basics, ordinary quality beyond the steaks
Il Tartufo, Hyde Park
Fans of Assaggi will know that the doyenne, Luciana, has left to lend a hand at Il Tartufo, an urban Italian just off Hyde Park corner. It has classic, elegant feel, with cool tiles and patterned fabric, high-backed wood chairs setting the tone. Waist-coated service is very attentive and discreet, making this an ideal business lunch option (along with ample parking). As you’d expect, hearing orders called in Italian from an open kitchen, the cuisine is also classically Italian. The comprehensive menu features daily pasta specials and a few interesting alternatives to the “standard” Italian plates (veal, grilled fish and the like, all cooked “just so”). Starters are around R80-90, mains R150, so its certainly not a budget option, though the quality of the ingredients and the standard of the cooking fills the value gap. A small, well-priced wine list, with as many Italian options as local ones, is another plus. A recent lunch featured a very good spaghetti cozze (R89) from the specials menu, with clear and bright flavours just as advertised – tomato, garlic, chilli – and pasta that was cooked just right. A tiramisu to finish a quick lunch was however ordinary and somewhat dry (R45); and the espresso was average too. But previous meals have been very good indeed, good enough for me to forget this dessert and look forward to another taste of their rabbit ragout or fabulous risotto.
Mariana’s, Stanford
Mariana’s.
12 Du Toit Street, Stanford. 028 341 0272. Thursday to Sunday lunch only.
If there is one serious problem with Mariana’s, it is the challenge of finding a table here during season. The eponymous chef and her husband, Peter, have struck on a balance between life and the ravenous world of restaurants by establishing this country gem and offering only lunches, and these only at the end of the week and weekends. On top of that, they are closed for a couple of months in winter. Nevertheless, food lovers make international reservations and return year in and out.
The setting is a charming Overberg cottage right in the midst of this picturesque town, the small interior with its thick walls kept very plain in the vernacular tradition. A lovely garden out back sets a great backdrop to the patio seats (covered by beach umbrellas). One of the very first South African restaurants to talk local and seasonal when it comes to cuisine, they were, and still are, one of the few that were true to their word and cook very much from their own garden, often preserving fruits and vegetables too. The preservation of food and these stewed and confit flavours are also the cornerstone of Cape cooking, a school that Mariana sticks close to with admirable results.
But its no “bord kos” here, rather refined plates that present and showcase ingredients beautifully. And while heritage beans (Heerenbone from the West Coast) have been a staple on the menu for years, one of the other perennial hits is her superb white gazpacho, made with almonds and garlic and no tomato in sight. All at R40, other starters from the tiny menu this season were: richly flavoured springbok rillette (the fats melting into the venison), salted duck (reminiscent of a duck ham) and a fresh barley salad.
The complete list of mains (from R95 to R120) are a spinach roulade, fish curry, confit de canard, springbok pie and skaapblad. As the dishes suggest, these are elemental plates, with direct and delicious flavours. There’s a signature of authenticity to all these plates – much of this due to a commodity that few restaurants seem to use much of: time. Slow cooking, often overnight, is how Mariana gets melt-in-the-mouth tenderness and deep flavour.
Peter is a consummate but never obsequious host, and he’s assembled a great list of wines, many from local wineries and very well priced. You can also press him for an embellishment to their signature dessert, the “doodskoot” which consists of home-made ice cream, espresso, biscotti and amaretto – the optional extras include grappa and/or witblits. That is, of course, if you get a reservation, but this may be more likely now that season is winding down. If no luck, it’s a fine idea to plan ahead and make an afternoon of it.
For: Excellent country cooking in a tranquil environment, with warm hosts.
Against: Very limited seating and opening hours.
As published in Business Day
Lemon-Butta, Hermanus
Many of us think that franchise restaurants tend to default to lower common demoninators, and many of them are indeed in the business of cutting corners to lower costs – with obvious results.
At the same time, South Africa does have a fine tradition of starting some (justifiably) highly successful ones, which deliver a great product for the price and the (often family) clientele. The Spur empire and the now international Nando’s immediately come to mind. The Lemon-Butta franchise of seafood restaurants is by no means big (two in the Cape) but a few recent meals at the Hermanus branch served as a salutary example of how managerial attention can take a formerly bland restaurant and make it one that offers not only a reliable eating experience – the promise that one hopes a franchise delivers on – but even a better than average one. At this Lemon-Butta, a master sushi chef rolls and slices some excellent sushi and the seafood platters are fresh and well-priced. The service is good, and led by the owner, who has also introduced a good wine list. To top it all, there are window views right onto the ocean, mitigating the fact of the rather plain interior. In sum, this (surprisingly) makes it one of the best options for seafood in this seaside town.
Corner Harbour Road and Marine Drive, Hermanus. 028 312 36 11
Winning Reviews for December; and a wish for 2012
In December, the Chocolate Block-winning reviews were a detailed one of Babel by Patrick; and a similarly descriptive one of Le Soufflé by Lynne. Send a review and it could be you…
December is a curious month for dining out in South Africa. The restaurants are very busy and no doubt enjoy the extra revenues. They are, in many ways, operating at optimum efficiency in the kitchen and the throughput means you are likely to eat very consistently fresh food. On the flipside, the sudden rush can stretch their service capacities and I have heard many complaints of such. Still, the holiday spirit means lots of forgiveness.
My wish for the year ahead: Restaurants leaving the preaching of freshness and seasonality and simply practising what should be taken for granted.
Here’s to a great 2012 for the industry – which means many great meals for us diners!
