Food is an instantaneous and fleeting type of gratification and dining, when taken out of its immediate context, is an indulgent exercise very far removed from its original intention, namely sustenance. Knowing all of this, you would assume that I would be able to restrain myself. After all, we are in the midst of a much publicised economic recession, are we not? We should be scrimping and saving, buying in bulk, pickling, preserving and living by our wits. And yet, none of this is quite sufficient to keep me in line.

So off we went, Rouve and I, last Thursday evening to Fork Restaurant in Long Street. I would advise that anyone who ventures to that part of town after dark go in pairs. The inner-city has a whole bunch of nooks and crannies that are as threatening in darkness as they are quaint in daylight and you can never be too cautious. That aside, the restaurant is lovely. Situated in a narrow, upright building with a Victorian facade, the smoking section is located on the ground floor with a rickety staircase that leads to non-smoking area on the first floor.

The restaurant is unique in the sense that it ONLY serves tapas. If you are a one solid plate of food type of diner, rather give it a skip and save both the waiter and yourself a whole lot of hassle. Everything on the menu, from prime rib to ostrich Carpaccio and malva pudding comes in the shape of four bite-sized pieces. This means that, ideally, your dining party should consist of either two or four people, to avoid first fights over the last unclaimed morsel. Almost all of the wines on the wine list are available per glass, since you may want to switch between cultivars as you enjoy different courses.

I don’t want to go into too much detail where the food is concerned, since I will only end up sounding like a gushing gastronome. Seriously, everything was simply divine, darling *insert overt inflection and flapping hand gestures*. The interior is comfortable and expertly styled, nothing is overt and every element works together with the next to create a warm, yet unfettered ambience. If you book beforehand I would recommend that you reserve one of the upstairs booths; there is something decidedly romantic and intellectual about dining in an oak-lined nook.

The evening will end up being expensive, take my word for it. No matter how good your intentions, you will give your wallet (and conscience) a serious knock. Just to illustrate to keep ourselves from over-indulging Rouve and I both had supper at home before going to Fork. We were merely going to see what all the fuss was about and maybe to have ONE plate of tapas and a glass of wine each. Wishful thinking. Our bill came to over R500 and we basically waddled home, which is testament to both the diversity of the menu and the quiet instigation of our knowledgeable waitress.

So, if you have a special occasion coming up or some cash to spare, make your way down to Fork for a gastronomical experience bar none. It really is worth it. No Cape Town tour would be complete without exploring the Mother City’s temptations, after all.

Later…

And that is the end of my bread-based consumption for ten days. Book me into a snazzy Italian restaurant in Cape Town for my reward, but in the meanwhile, I look forward to matzah, matzah and more matzah. There are many things to do in Cape Town over Pesach, sadly none of them involve pizza. Chag Sameach!

Franschhoek mountains

There are a few words in the English language that are tragically overused: delicious, delectable, sumptuous, scrumptious, gorgeous, exquisite and mouthwatering – to name but a few. When it comes to places like Genot Restaurant I wish that there was some way to resuscitate these terms, to re-inject them with their original meanings. Sadly this is not possible and I will have to make do with these clichéd, time-worn terms.

I suffer from a chronic condition my father calls ‘champagne taste on a beer budget’, which basically results in me spending an atrocious amount of my expendable income on fancy dinners and wines when I really should be focusing on the state of things like, say, my shoes. My latest over-indulgence was hosted my Genot Restaurant.

Situated on the beautiful Klein Genot wine estate in Franschhoek, the Genot kitchen is run by renowned chef Mark Radnay. I had been to the farm before, but at that stage the restaurant wasn’t quite finished yet and I had been biting at the bit to go ever since. And man, is it impressive! A large, voluminous building with clean lines and lovely surrounding landscaping, the restaurant/cellar/wine tasting room is situated smack bang in the middle of the Klein Genot vineyards. Patrons are greeted at the gravel-strewn parking lot by a very friendly attendant who then accompanies you to the restaurant and hands you over to the hostess.

Although it was a lovely balmy evening, there was a hint of thunder in the air and the proprietors had erred on the side of caution and decided not to set up the outside dining area. We were, of course, having none of that! A table was swiftly laid and we settled down to watch as dusk descended slowly and spectacularly on the Franschhoek Valley. I can only imagine what the view must be like on a clear evening, but the moodiness of the cloudy sky added a certain sense of drama that was somehow completely delicious.

Being innately curious I couldn’t just be a well-behaved customer, I had to get up and explore the restaurant. The main dining area is a stunning combination of bare brick walls, accented with baroque element like boldly printed wallpaper and an abundance of crystal chandeliers. And best of all – the kitchen is completely visible, so you can view Mark and his team bustling about preparing your meal. I am of the opinion that a visible kitchen says much about the way that a restaurant team approaches their craft – being on display like that means that you have a lot of confidence in your abilities and after having my meal I can honestly say their confidence is certainly not misplaced.

The smoking section is also lovely. As a smoker I often feel like sitting in the smoking area of a restaurant is somewhat akin to being shunted to the corner with a dunce hat, but there is none of that at Genot. The smoking section hosts the bar and is laid out around a nice, big fireplace (something I will simply have to experience in the heart of a Cape winter). The chairs and tables are comfy and stylish and imbued with the air of a gentlemen’s cigar lounge from the previous century while still managing to be completely on trend.

So, the food, oh the food! Here is what we had:

Joseph:

Rooikrans smoked snoek quiche with apricot chutney and a side salad
***
Aged sirloin (m-r) with butternut gnocchi, onion marmalade and Pinotage jus
***
Vanilla pod crème brulee with apricots and an almond koeksister

Anna-Bet:

Seared tuna with daikon cucumber & mint with a soya-mirin and wasabi mayo
***
Vanilla pod crème brulee with apricots and an almond koeksister

Beverage-wise we each had a glass of Villiera Tradition Cap Classique since we were celebrating Jo’s birthday and then moved on to a very nice bottle of Porcupine Ridge Viognier-Grenache (how incredibly cultured are we!). The wine was absolutely, unequivocally, drop-dead gorgeous and I don’t care how completely unsavvy it is to say so. Although it is a white, it went perfectly with both my fish and Jo’s meat (that was perfectly done by the way).

Special thanks have to go to Babs Sogwedla, our waitress for the evening. She succeeded in being courteous and friendly without being overly familiar, a juggling act that very few waiters ever manage to achieve. She was also well-dressed, well-spoken and completely versed in the intricacies of the menu, something that I greatly admire.

I will be keeping an eye on this restaurant; it is most certainly going to be an incredibly big hit with foodies from around the Winelands. Plus I am already envisioning a lovely spring wedding hosted in the spacious courtyard (something that will probably give my both my dad and his bank manager many sleepless nights). Do yourself a favour – if you are planning a Cape Town tour, save up and head out to Genot. There is no way you’ll be sorry.

Valentine’s Day was, of course, amazing. I may not be the most romantic man in the world, but I had organised the most romantic dinner for my girlfriend and I. For legal reasons, I won’t reveal her name, so let’s just call her Miss Sunshine. A work colleague of mine passed an email on to me, revealing this amazing dinner for two at the Synergy Restaurant, located on the seventh floor of the Nelson Rhodes Place in Cape Town. The price was fantastic as well, as it was only under R500 for a five course meal for two. I could hardly resist. I called a moment later to book our place and confirmed reservations for 7pm on February the 14th.

Flash forward three weeks. Miss Sunshine and I were smartly groomed for the night ahead. We scooted over in style, as the night was warm and inviting, welcoming all of its patrons into its inky black fold. We parked on the lower level and squeezed ourselves into the world’s smallest elevator to reach the prestigious seventh floor. What greeted us was a spectacular sight. A sparkling bar, with ebony white features as the main greeting station and rows of comfortable seating lined the restaurant up and down its entire length. We were greeted by another patron of the night, a tall blonde waitress who showed us promptly to our table.

The tables themselves were lavishly decked out in a splendid romantic theme. Little hearts decorated the crisp white table cloth and a heart was also drawn into the plush seating of our high-back chairs. Miss Sunshine was given a single red rose and we were both privy to a Strawberry Daiquiri. As we sat and watched the light slowly fade over the elegant pool (many guests live directly above the restaurant), our enthusiastic waitress greeted us with a friendly smile and our menus for the evening. Also, there was to be a draw (which we would not win). This was another highlight of the already splendid evening.

And so dinner began. We were asked of which one of the main dishes we would both be choosing, as the options were either the rack of the lamb or the pan-fried Norwegian salmon. We both chose the lamb, as we had eaten salmon for supper the night before. And with that, the menus were taken away and the Amuse-Bouche was placed in front of us. I am at a loss to explain what the meat exactly was (my girlfriend wagered ostrich, I bet on biltong) but it was presented in such a way that it did not matter. A tiny drivel of meat, splashed with glass noodles and a delectable sauce, it was a most appetising snack. We made the mistake of telling our waitress to take her time with each meal, as our food only came in 30 to 45 min intervals. After a substantial waiting period, and two drinks later, the Tomato Consommé was delivered to our table. Synergy is known for combining eclectic ingredients to create extra ordinary meals and this one was no different.

A sliver of tomato, with salmon mousse crammed inside and a quarter of what can only be described as a prawn rootie, floated gently in a tomato broth. It was a taste sensation and one that I can remember through thought alone. After another lengthy wait, the salad arrived. It was designed by the hands of an artist, as each leaf, and each cube of cheese was so expertly placed that it was almost a shame to eat it. But eat it we did.
After the longest period of time yet, the Rack of Lamb had finally arrived. It too, was handsomely decorated and wonderfully prepared. The meat was soft and moist, dripping of the bone at the slightest touch of my cutlery. This alone made up for the outright lack of service we were experiencing. It was served with a delicious potato bake concoction on the side. After berating our waitress slightly for the lack of attention, the arrival of our dessert snapped us out of the foul mood her attitude had placed us in.

The chocolate malva pudding with a twist was an unbelievable sight. Like art nouveau, the dessert was designed to shock the eyes with a unique and otherworldly sight. A ribbon of crystallised sugar jutted out of the plate, with a wafer supporting the malva pudding on the bottom. And inside the pudding, there was a scoop of ice-cream which contained a parcel of wild berry sorbet. My friends, it was the greatest dessert I have ever had, or will ever have. This marked the end of the evening, and Miss Sunshine and I did not decide to stay for coffee, it was already 10:30pm and it was time for the evening to end. Synergy was an amazing restaurant to spend our special day at; it is a pity about the poor service. I can understand that they were busy, but they could have compensated for this by having more waiters on staff. Overall, this was an amazing experience and well worth a visit. No tour in Cape Town is complete without having visited this restaurant in the sky.

So, if you’ve been reading this blog regularly you would’ve recently enjoyed my diatribe about the plastic institution that is Valentine’s Day. Although I believe that romance should not be dictated by greeting card companies and other commercial institutions, I do however believe in enjoying a good meal every now and again and Valentine’s Day is just as good an occasion as any other to indulge this particular whim of mine.

So, off we went to Eaglevlei. After a little detour (not due to a lack of directions on the website, just due to general lack of direction on my part) my partner and I arrived to find the venue buzzing with Valentine’s celebrations. This included a very talented live Jazz band, the name of which I unfortunately neglected to take, and a lovely picnic area where patrons could enjoy their own packed lunches provided they bought wine from the restaurant. This being the more frugal option, I obviously elected to have lunch at the restaurant, which happily turned out to have been a great idea.

The atmosphere was a bit tense – there is a new manager and his obvious nervousness manifested itself in a certain brusqueness towards the clientele and an unnecessarily rude manner towards the waiters themselves. My personal opinion is that a tense situation is not made any better by introducing further stressors and he would have created a much better working atmosphere by encouraging instead of berating his staff.

That aside, the rest of our lunch was AWESOME! I have been told that the Vineyard Kitchen’s food is great from various reputable sources and they were most certainly not exaggerating. After being seated in a particularly lovely part of the restaurant (a shaded area just off of the bar from where we could view all the beautiful artwork in the venue’s fledgling gallery, as well as the surrounding vineyards) we were given ample time to peruse the tempting menu and expertly guided in our wine selection.

We ended up choosing the Eaglevlei Pink 2008, a beautiful Pinotage rosé that succeeded in being simultaneously juicy and delightfully dry. Being a chardonnay fan myself I am always afraid that rosé might turn out to be too sweet, but there is no such problem with the Pink. Suffice it to say, it was so good that we probably drank it faster than is considered polite.

But let’s get to the food! I had the Gemsbok Loin with biltong sauce, a dish that was so beautifully presented that I felt bad eating it. For about a minute, then I tucked in with relish! Delicate flavor combinations and expertly cooked meat made for one of the best meals I have ever had (I have to admit that I actually made the faux pas of surreptitiously wiping the last little bits of gourmet goodness from the plate with my forefinger…). My partner enjoyed the Fillet Herbie’s Way. I unfortunately cannot attest to the flavours of this particular dish as I was not even allowed a single bite (it was that good).

We will have to go back another time to sample their dessert menu (which did look particularly luscious by the way), since we were too stuffed to even contemplate any sweets.

To summarize:

THE PROS:
• Super service from the various people that waited on us
• Fantastic food
• A beautiful location
• Live music
• Clean, beautifully decorated bathrooms
THE CONS:
• Bit of a drive (if something like that tends to bother you)
• Managerial difficulties
• A less-than-perfect website. Before I made the booking I tried to find their menu on the web, which turned out to be impossible. If I hadn’t heard good reviews of their food beforehand I would probably not have made a reservation due to this oversight. A great venue like this should really make proper use of all the media avenues they have available and their website would be a good place to start.

I would recommend a meal at Eaglevlei for anyone who enjoys having good food in a beautiful location. If you have a family you could even make a day of it. There is a great big jungle gym for the kiddies to enjoy while mum and dad partake in tasting of the estate’s wines. The venue is also great for birthday parties and could (I imagine) make a great wedding location as well. A Cape Town tour like no other, a day in the Winelands is a must for any culinary adventurer!