The residents of our new London home love visiting Cape Town – whether it is South Africans visiting home, clients on their third visit or friends and colleagues planning honeymoons and bucket list trips. After being asked – where should we eat for about the thirtieth time I decided to pull together a long list.
Welcome to the long list:
Our first and last meal every visit
– Obi on Long street. Best best sushi.
Order this: salmon roses, rainbow rolls, shogun rolls, emperor rolls, nasu miso
Great restaurants: Cape Town
– Bao down: Delicious Asian style shared plates. Don’t miss the prawn toast, the cauliflower cakes and the miso tart 🍤🥮
– Pot luck club: Amazing tapas with great views and wine list 🥂🌮
– Chef’s warehouse at Beau Constantia: four small plate courses. Every dish is a flavour bomb. If you’re clever, order one of each per course so that between two people you can try all eight dishes. And don’t skip the oysters to start! Another great wine list
– Thali: modern Indian shared dining. Superb! Very dietary restriction friendly with pescetarian, vegetarian and vegan menus available. Don’t skip the oysters to start. No bookings but worth hanging around for a spot. Bonus points if you can be seated in their gorgeous courtyard.
– La Colombe in Constantia: fine dining, delicious, great service. Do the wine pairing. Comparable with the best of the three michelin star restaurants we have visited. If you have silly money to spend – the option wine cellar course and the optional wagyu are sensaaational and worth the splurge.
– Fyn: fine dining kaiseki-style menu. Again, do the pairing
– Tjing Tjing Momiji: phenomenal kaiseki style multi course menu. All incredible but the dessert is sensational 🥧🍫
– Chef’s Warehouse at Tintswalo: This spot gets mixed reviews but we absolutely loved it. The food is fantastic but potentially, yes Beau Constantia’s Chef’s Warehouse is better. HOWEVER, you will not find a more beautiful restaurant setting in the world. Being right on the Atlantic surrounded by our mountains is magical. Definitely book in advance and ask for a table outside.
Great restaurants: Stellenbosch
– Spek en bone: great small plates
– Eike: fine dining with a heavy South African/Afrikaans influence
– Tokara: great food, views and wine. Lovely casual lunch option
– Terroir: French style dining in the winelands. Their prawn risotto is iconic.
– De Vrije burger: my best burger in SA
– Genki: Fab sushi in a gorgeous courtyard
– Jordan: casual fine dining. Don’t miss the soufflés plated table side
Franschhoek
– Babel at babylonstoren: love their steak and bone marrow. Incredible gardens. Their casual restaurant is rubbish so if you don’t get a booking at Babel, still visit the gardens but go next door to Cosecha for lunch
– Cosecha: authentic Mexican food. All delicious. Don’t miss the guacamole 🥑
Honourable mentions for Cape Town locals
– Yoffi falafel: super casual but great falafels at muizenberg beach 🧆🥗
– Salushi: our favourite affordable sushi spot. Order many salmon roses and bonbons gifts 🍣🎁
– Hesheng: fantastic hole in the wall Chinese spot. Soup dumplings of dreams!! Also spring onion pancakes, pork dumplings, cucumber salad 🥟🥟
– Mosi Smoke and Braaihouse at Makers Landing: best lamb chop, pap and chakalaka of my life 🥩
– Clarke’s: great burgers 🍔🍟. Fun vibe!
– The Dutchess of Wisbeach: for a fat party and a great mac&cheese
– Cheyne’s: Asian tapas. They run great winter specials
Drinks
– Culture Club: best wine list in SA, great vibe, often live music on the weekends 🍷
– The Power & the glory: very casual drinking spot. Do naaawt miss their great hotdogs 🌭
– Publik: fantastic wine spot
Breakfast / baked goods
– Jason bakery: order everything. Also apparently great coffee
– Hemelhuijs: incredible breakfast and points for most beautiful restaurant 🥞
– Mulberry and Prince: Instagram worth breakfast that is also very delicious. Fried chicken and waffles
On our want to try list
– Salsify: for fine dining in a gorgeous setting
– Nelson’s eye: Cult following for steaks but apparently pretty seedy and rough!! So you have been warned.
– Only fools: Apparently the new best burgers in Cape Town and something we’re keen to test out 🙂
– Grub & Vine at the Norval – our gorgeous friends Matt and Roxanne have opened their newest baby in the Southern Suburbs and the food is looking amazing! I have yet to visit but it is on my list for our next visit in November. They shared some brunch / breakfast menu options on their instagram account recently and it all just looked TOO good.
Have the best time in Cape Town!
with all my love, Tahlia
