Best Restaurants in Cape Town

Cape Town is fast becoming Africa’s finest destination for world-class restaurants. Nearby lies the Winelands, which contains the majority of the continent’s other excellent eateries! In short, the ‘Cape’, including the city and its surrounding winelands, offers one of the best gastronomic experiences on the planet. I’m a self-proclaimed fine food fanatic; here are my top recommendations for Cape Town’s best restaurants.

1. Test Kitchen

Number one on my list is the fabulous Test Kitchen. This outrageously amazing restaurant has a waiting list till the next millennium… but get in and it’s a memory to last even longer! Serving a fusion of contemporary food with a distinct Asian influence, this is one of the most talked-about restaurants in Africa. Make sure we book it up for you – and book early to avoid disappointment!

The multi-award winning Test Kitchen (TTK) has been a foodie front-runner since its inception. Diners begin their culinary journey by sharing exquisitely prepared and presented tapas-style offerings. From here, things progress to a more formal fine dining space with twenty-one (21) courses in all, each plated on a specifically chosen plate or vessel.

2. Foxcroft

Voted “New Restaurant of the Year” in South Africa in 2016, Foxcroft has been one of the most talked-about restaurants in Cape Town. The menu is remarkably simple at first glance, but delivers bold, thoughtfully put-together, boundary-pushing dishes with a comprehensive but not overwhelming wine list.

3. Janse & Co.

Janse & Co is situated in the iconic Kloof street. The executive chef, Arno, serves up his signature humble-haute cuisine in a laidback inner-city environment. The palate-popping dishes are all prepared with the best ingredients, with passion and with a strong focus on provenance and seasonality.

4. La Colombe

Fourth, is the wonderful La Colombe. Sitting pretty on the picturesque Silvermist organic wine estate, La Colombe is listed as one of SA’s top 10 restaurants. Diners have the privilege to enjoy a fusion of Asian and French cuisine, the freshest seasonal produce, breath-taking views and award-winning fine wines.

5. The Shortmarket Club

The menu is described as “modern interpretations of the classics” and the wine list has some unusual and delicious options. The Shortmarket Club has got atmosphere in spades, oozing the understated glamour of an upscale members-only club from the fifties.

So there you have it, those are my top recommendations for restaurants in Cape Town... but here’s a list of other amazing places that are the pick of their specialities:

• Keerom is the best of Cape Town’s Italian restaurants. Offering up the best of traditional Italy, it’s my top recommendation for classic cuisine, whilst Constantia Uitsig offers a more modern twist on Italian specialities.
• For sushi, you should probably look no further than the fairly recently opened Nobu, in the One&Only hotel on the waterfront. However, for something rather special I’d always suggest Wakame at Green Point. With simply stunning views, this restaurant serves up trendy sushi and some great seafood dishes.
• Finally, here’s something of a random postscript! If you take the coastal road up to Chapman’s Peak, you will pass a small restaurant whose name I cannot remember. It’s a small place with an outrageously excellent view. The point here is not necessarily to visit the restaurant, but to make sure that you do the drive! Take a picnic, stop somewhere for lunch… just make sure that you do this drive!

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