Cape Town and the Western Cape are renowned for their array of wonderful activities, attractions, and hotels. They also have a huge choice of world-class restaurants that put the cherry on the cake of any holiday in this part of South Africa. We’ve shared some fabulous and unique restaurants in the Central Business District (many in the hip area of Kloof Street), plus other must-visit dining destinations in Cape Town.
In the Central Business District (CBD)
ëlgr: a Kloof Street venue by Swedish chef Jesper Nilsson, who combines inspiration from his Nordic heritage with his culinary experiences in South Africa. This modern and casual restaurant is known for its in-season menus with uncomplicated flavours, featuring dishes such as raw beef with sour cream and nasturtium.
Kloof Street House: this beautiful Victorian house still has many of its original features, and its fairy-lit garden is a popular choice for stylish Sunday lunches accompanied by live jazz. Book a table here for global dining, including grilled ostrich with wholegrain mustard and sweet potato mash.
Galjoen: a fashionable new seafood restaurant in a semi-industrial space that makes you feel like you’re sitting in a harbour. With no menu options made public, they instead serve a set tasting menu with an emphasis on sustainable fishing and consumption to limit food waste. If it’s not from South Africa, it’s not going on the menu.
Ramenhead: for serious ramen fans, this is a top spot for slurping silky, freshly made, authentic Japanese noodles. Served in four ways, you can expect to feast on sesame miso, tonkotsu, tori chintan, and soup-less hamburger-style mazemen made with barbecue wagyu brisket.
Thali: a contemporary Indian restaurant built around the concept of the thali eating style: complete meals with ten or more regional Indian dishes. Served over three courses, it begins with milder flavours and works towards hotter curries.
Camps Bay
Salsify: an award-winning fine-dining restaurant serving modern seasonal dishes such as jig-caught Simon’s Town chokka with chive gnocchi and fresh truffle. Alongside the food, dining here is set against a gorgeous backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean and the majestic mountain, Lion’s Head.
Constantia Winelands
Chefs Warehouse Beau Constantia: this is a gorgeous venue with lovely views across the valley. They offer a seasonal four-course set menu based largely on ingredients grown locally or at the Beau Constantia boutique wine farm, with its vineyard and False Bay views.
Bistro Sixteen82 at Steenberg: book a table at this tapas and bistro-style restaurant, serving innovative global dishes next to Steenberg's winery and wine-tasting room. Its dining terrace spills into the surrounding indigenous gardens, with views over the magnificent stone mountains and winelands.
Stellenbosch
Post & Pepper: a destination dining venue in the historic town’s old post office, serving playful, reimagined classics in the form of exquisite small plates. Enjoy harissa oysters and Cape Malay tuna tataki with coconut, curry leaf, pineapple, and slangetjies (pea noodles).
Somerset West
CHORUS Restaurant: located on the Waterkloof Wine Estate, they serve a seasonal four and six-course menu featuring dishes such as roast kabeljou with Saldanha Bay mussel chowder and fennel. Each course is also paired with a Waterkloof wine.
Paternoster
Wolfgat: Located in a 130-year-old building, this restaurant was featured on The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2021 list for its seven-course tasting menu based on sustainable seafood. Guests can expect local lamb and venison, edible plants, wild herbs, seaweed from rock pools, and pickings from its garden.
Overberg
Moggs Country Cookhouse: a family-run restaurant in the divine Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, surrounded by mountains, fields, fruits, and vines. Its farm-fresh produce is a great way to refuel after whale watching in Hermanus.
Creation: a wine estate and restaurant with a fantastic wine-pairing menu that is sometimes served to blindfolded guests to heighten the other senses, including taste and smell.
Madre: a country restaurant in the heart of Stanford, it’s just 30 minutes from bustling Hermanus en route to Gansbaai. With garden-to-table produce served from a daily chalkboard menu, it’s perfect for those who appreciate al fresco dining as meals are enjoyed on a sunny veranda overlooking a large vegetable garden.
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There are so many great reasons to experience certain destinations in the shoulder seasons – that sweet spot between a region’s peak season and off-season. Think fewer crowds and queues for major attractions, better-value flights and other travel, and a more authentic experience of the destination. We’ve put our heads together to share a few of our favourite places that can be just as good or even better outside of high season.
