Tasting Menus and Wine Pairings - The Best of Cape Town's Restaurants

I feel compelled to begin with the family qualifier to all matters culinary, "Not that food is important." Of course, at times it is all-important and Cape Town was one of those times and places where we went for the gold, with help from family, friends, and the capable Raymond who gave us suggestions.

Tasting menus and wine pairings--where you have 4, 5, or even 8 courses with wines specifically selected to go with each course--seem to be de rigueur in the Western Cape. This must be part of a concerted effort to promote South African wines, which are the only wines on the menus. And well they should be promoted, especially the whites.

We managed to survive three consecutive evenings of fine dining, two of which featured tasting menus. The three restaurants were in Cape Town. The Test Kitchen is the current hot spot. Its decor is somewhat industrial and it is located in a renovated complex called The Biscuit Factory. During the day many high-end shops offer all kinds of discretionary spending opportunities, including clothing and crafts. On Saturdays there is an open air farmer's market there as well. That is on the "next time" list for sure.

Key to dessert art: squeeze bottles.

Our last minute seats at the Test Kitchen were at "the chef's table," meaning we sat on bar stools overlooking the preparation of food. In our case, we watched desserts and palate cleansers being prepared all night. In fact, we got way too invested in how "our two dessert guys" were doing (mostly great) and did not like the intrusions of a supervisor who scolded them (the supervisor looked like Doogie Howser). The current style of cooking that uses multiple ingredients, most of which turn out to be unrecognizable in the final product, certainly governed these desserts. But we got a lot of great ideas for presentation, including how to create a swirl of mango puree with a small paintbrush. That's just for starters. We also watched them broil sheets of paper-thin meringue that were then removed from the baking dish and scrunched into erstwhile baskets for another dessert. Obviously, we got caught up in the scene before us and lost track of time. Our foods, especially my main dish of fish, were wonderful and appropriately portioned.

Seafood course at TK--Food As Art

Next up was La Colombe, which we enjoyed with friends from the U.S. Consulate (and William and Mary) and her visiting mother, a professor at Howard. La Colombe is located in Constantia, which is now a near-suburb of the city. The restaurant has recently been bought out by the chef and will relocate in September. It is currently in the middle of an old farm/winery which has been in limbo for years. We used the a la carte menu here. The food has a striking resemblance in presentation and description to what we had seen at The Test Kitchen. It turns out the head chef at TK used to be at La Colombe. Our friends were disappointed their "personal sommelier" was not working the evening we were there. We did not suffer a lack of great wines despite his absence.

On Friday evening, after a restful day of spa treatments, we headed to Buiten Verwachting, which had been recommended by Jim and Sharon Rousmaniere. The name means "Beyond Expectations" in Afrikaans. Also in Constantia, this restaurant is part of a large farm and now has several event venues. It is a popular spot for picnics and weddings. As it is winter now, we did not have a good view of the setting because it was already long past dark when we arrived at 7:30. In fact, we drove some distance after entering the property--without the help of any lighting. When we arrived at the restaurant it was so dark we wondered if we had made some mistake and they were not open!

Chalmar steak tartare with quail egg and delicious
accompaniments at Buiten Verwachting

Fortunately they were not only open but waiting for us. We started with a glass of Methode Cap Classique while we perused the menu. It did not take long to opt for the tasting menu with wine pairings and we were escorted to a lovely table that in the light of day looks out on a veranda. Three courses stand out in my memory as among the best food we had, among many wonderful offerings. The first was a plate of steak tartare from local beef, topped with a raw quail egg planted in the top and surrounded with teeny scoops of things like minced gherkins, anchovies, egg whites, egg yolks, olive tapenade, and tiny triangle toasts. The next memorable course was a seafood chowder served in a wide bowl with a mound of seafood in the center surrounded by a creamy broth that had been whipped into a foam. Finally, perhaps the most memorable course was springbok, an antelope that is the national animal and also provides the name for the RSA rugby team. It was served much as one might see a rack of lamb served in the U.S. The meat was very lean but rich and it was surrounded by small offerings of six or seven vegetables. All the portions at Buiten Verwachting were larger than elsewhere and larger than one might expect in a five-course meal. It reminded me of great restaurants in The Netherlands that offered French-style food in generous Dutch proportions with "diverse groenten" (different vegetables).

With this meal, our week came to an end. We had three hours of sleep before our airport pick-up by Raymond. I felt as if I was still digesting dinner when we got to the airport. I couldn't even drink coffee until we got home. But what a way to go out!