After a few weeks of closure for a complete renovation and expansion of its facilities, the Grand Café & Beach has re-opened, ready for the summer season lying ahead. Yesterday a number of writers was invited by Manley Communications to experience the Grand, on a perfect sunny summer beach day. Continue reading →
Tag Archives: Asoka
WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 19 March
Tourism, Food, and wine news headlines
* Wesgro, the Tourism, Trade, and Investment promotion agency for the Western Cape, has announced that it is sponsoring the inaugural African Responsible Tourism Awards in conjunction with World Travel Market Africa and the International Centre for Responsible Tourism. The Award winners will be announced during Africa Travel Week on 16 April. (received via media release from Wesgro).
* Cape Town has the most WORLD CLASS bars in South Africa, a total of 19 out of 46. Johannesburg has 15, and Durban 12. Achieving this status reflects their expertly made cocktails and their ‘charismatic mixology stars‘. Their bartenders automatically enter the WORLD CLASS Global Final, to be held in Cape Town later this year. The Cape Town bars include Orphanage, Umi, Asoka, Buena Vista, Bascule, Café Caprice, HQ, One & Only Vista Bar, Tjing Continue reading →
Festive Christmas and New Year restaurant celebrations in Cape Town and Winelands!
Christmas Eve
* La Mouette, Cape Town: 6-course dinner R445. Tel (021) 433-0856
* Savour, African Pride 15 on Orange, Cape Town: 5-courses R450. Tel (021) 469-8000
* The Conservatory at Cellars Hohenhort, Cape Town: 6-course dinner R 750 p.p. Tel (021) 794-5535
* Twelve Apostles Hotel & Spa, Cape Town: 4-course R955 plus eggnog. Tel (021) 437-9000
* Makaron at Majeka House, Stellenbosch: 4-course dinner R 55o p.p. Tel (021) 880-1550
* Bosman’s at Grande Roche, Paarl: 5-course dinner with pianist R1395 p.p. Tel (021) 863-5100 Continue reading →
Cape Town world’s Best City in Telegraph Travel Awards 2014!
Cape Town has done it again, being named Best City in the World in the Telegraph Travel Awards 2014 by its readers for the third year in a row! Vancouver and Venice follow in second and third position, respectively, this year. The motivation for Cape Town’s top position is written by Pippa du Bruyn, who is a Cape Town-based local travel writer and ‘destination expert’, including author of a ‘Frommer’s Guide’ to South Africa, and of ‘A Hedonist’s Guide to Cape Town’. De Bruyn surprisingly exaggerates our restaurants as ‘Michelin-rated‘ fare, and in describing Dyer Island near Gansbaai as being in Cape Town. Her laudation for Cape Town follows: Continue reading →
Restaurant Review: Mondiall Restaurant in the V&A Waterfront is out of the world!
After a superb sail around Table Bay, for the media launch of the Cape2Rio Yacht Race, during which we were escorted back into the harbour by a school of dolphins, my birthday lunch at Mondiall, previously The Green Dolphin, was a super spoil on Friday, both by Nicolette Waterford and the restaurant.
Mondiall is co-owned by Chef Peter Tempelhoff, Executive Chef of the McGrath Collection and Eat Out Top 10 Chef of The Greenhouse, and Patrick Symington, previous owner of Café Dharma and Asoka. Chef Peter remains at the McGrath Collection (we were told Mrs McGrath has eaten there four times since the restaurant opened at the beginning of the month), and pops in regularly. Patrick was in the restaurant on Friday, and was a most charming host, sitting down at our table to chat. I asked Patrick about their incorrect spelling of ‘Mondial‘, 
meaning around the world, apt for the V&A Waterfront location as South Africa’s leading tourist attraction. Patrick had a most plausible esoteric explanation for it numerologically (it’s a very lucky number 8, and balanced too), as well as design wise, the two legs of the ‘M’ balancing with the two ‘l’s at the end of the word! He said that it is a unique word, and is theirs now! Patrick is involved in solar heating now, when he is not at Mondiall. He said that they are ‘in for the long haul‘ with the restaurant, having signed a lease for 5 years, with an option to renew for a further five. Patrick led the staff in singing for my birthday! Chef Oliver Cattermole is one of my favourite chefs, having met him when he was at Dash at the Queen Victoria Hotel, whereafter he had a short stint at the former What’s On, and then he worked at the Le Franschhoek Hotel before joining and setting up the kitchen at Mondiall, the menu design being a partnership between Chefs Peter and Oliver. Suzanne Taylor, previously of former Constantia Uitsig, was a gracious Restaurant Manager. Continue reading →
WhaleTales Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines: 19 November
Tourism, Food, and Wine news headlines
* The confidence of consumers in their financial situation has reached the lowest level in 20 years, reveals the latest FNB/Bureau of Economic Consumer Confidence Index (of minus 15), reports the Cape Argus.
* South Africa’s Top 24 cocktail bars have been announced, and have been selected by Diageo WORLD CLASS to participate in a competition to select South Africa’s best bartender to represent our country at the Diageo Reserve WORLD CLASS Bartender of the Year 2014: Asoka, Bascule, Buena Vista, Café Caprice, Casa Del Sol, Dear Me (Tjing Tjing), HQ, Vista Bar at the One&Only Cape Town, Orphanage, Piano Bar, The Maslow Hotel, The Michelangelo, Signature Restaurant, OCD, Café Della Salute, Mark Anthony at Emperor’s Palace, Elevate, the Elangeni & Maharani, Fairmont Hotel, Harvey’s Restaurant, Private, Havana Grill, Unity Bar, and the Oyster Box Hotel. (received by media release from Communication Services Africa)
* The Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art will open in the V&A Waterfront in 2016, in the new Silo building on the Clocktower side of the Waterfront. It will be the largest gallery in the country, with 9500 m² of space.
* Young American travelers are becoming less brand loyal, looking for Continue reading →
Restaurant Review: Kloof Street House a romantic Cape Town hideaway!
On Thursday evening Katie Friedman from Orphanage Cocktail Emporium, Veronica from Blog ‘Mother City Magic‘, whom we had met at Cape Town Active’s Twitter and Blogger Meetup at the Hilton Cape Town, and I tried out Kloof Street House. Relative to what I had heard about the restaurant and bar since it opened about six weeks ago, we were very pleasantly surprised about the food and service quality.
The building has a history of fine and less fine restaurants, including Manolo and Opal Lounge. It is a most beautiful building, hidden on Kloof Street. It has an attractive location in that it offers free parking behind the building, which many do not know about. The interior walls have been removed, to open up the front rooms, creating a free flowing space which can seat about 80 patrons Continue reading →
Kloof Street: Cape Town’s renowned restaurant road, constantly changing!
In September last year we wrote about Kloof Street, and suggested that it be renamed FoodHood, when the ‘Name your Hood’ campaign made its short-lived appearance. Kloof Street has 38 restaurants, making it one of the most densely populated restaurant streets. In the past year seven restaurants closed down on Kloof Street, including Opal Lounge, Chez Chez, Mason’s, and St Elmo’s, with some new restaurants opening. Frommers’ travel guide calls it “The Dining Mile”.
The restaurant list ranges from inexpensive food on the run (McDonalds, Nando’s, Scooters) to fine Milanese pastries (Caffe Milano), homely baking and cooking (Manna Epicure and Tamboers Winkel), the Eat Out Top 20 Restaurant finalist fine dining Planet Restaurant at the Mount Nelson Hotel, and numerous other restaurants. The street venues offer food served over long hours, meaning that one will always find something to eat on Kloof Street, even late at night.
We have listed the restaurants on Kloof Street, starting from the bottom of Kloof Street, and working up towards Table Mountain:
* Gourmetboerie – said to open in October, where Despaco and short-lived Sabrina’s used to be. 8 Kloof Street.
* McDonalds – Monday – Sunday, open 24 hours a day.
* Best of Asia – 7 Kloof Street. Tel (021) 423-1177. Monday – Saturday 11h30 – 22h00, Sunday 11h30 – 21h00.
* Frankie Fenner Meat Merchants: Deluxe coffee, Jason’s croissants and breads. Fresh and cured meats, eggs, chicken, duck, lamb, beef, pork. Metal Lane, 8 Kloof Street. Tel (021) 424-7204. Monday – Friday 7h30 – 17h30, Saturday 9h00 – 13h00.
* Bardelli’s – Italian cuisine, with pizzas. 18 Kloof Str. Tel (021 423-1502. Monday – Thursday 18h00 – 22h00, Friday and Saturday 18h00 – 23h00, Sunday 12h00 – 22h30
* Vida e Caffe – good coffees, few snacks. 34 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 426-0627. Monday – Sunday
* Mozzarella Bar – salads, sandwiches and other dishes all contain … mozzarella, plus Puglia Cheese mozzarella to buy. R10 LavAzza cappuccino excellent value. Some Caffe Milano (sister restaurant) pastries to buy. Giorgio Nava-owned. 51 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-5822. Monday – Saturday 7h00 – 19h00.
* Nando’s – chicken, chicken, chicken! – 42 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 426-0240. Monday – Sunday
* Knead – artisan bakery sells breads and some pastries, sit-down menu serves sandwiches, pizzas, egg dishes. Lifestyle on Kloof, 50 Kloof Street. Tel (021) 671-7915. Monday 7h00 – 18h00, Tuesday – Saturday 7h00 – 23h00, Sunday 7h30 – 18h00.
* Hudson’s Burger Joint – burgers highly regarded. 69A Kloof Str. Tel (021) 426-5974. Monday – Sunday 12h00 – 23h00
* Mitico Pizzeria e Spaghetteria – 71 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-2267. Monday – Saturday 11h00 – 22h00.
* Ocean Basket – Part of a seafood franchise, good value. 75 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-0322.
* Café Sofia Meze & Tapas – Breakfast and Lunch, part of a franchise. 60 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 426-0801.
* Arnold’s on Kloof – Well known for (early) breakfasts, but also large lunch and dinner menu, cocktails, salads, burgers, pasta and sandwiches. 60 Kloof Street. Tel (021) 424-4344. Monday – Friday 6h45 – late. Saturday & Sunday 8h00 – late.
* Planet Green Salad Bar – 103 Kloof Street. Monday – Friday 10h00 – 18h00, Saturday 10h00 – 14h00.
* Myög – frozen yoghurt with wide range of toppings (photograph), 103 Kloof Street. Monday – Saturday 10h00 – 22h00, Sunday 12h00 – 22h00.
* Planet Restaurant at Mount Nelson Hotel – fine dining, on Top 20 Eat Out list. Tel (021) 483-1000. Monday – Saturday dinner.
* Van Hunk’s – South African cuisine, comfortable dining. Corner Kloof and Upper Union Str. Tel (021) 422-5422. Monday – Sunday 11h30 – 22h00.
* Royo Kloof Asian Restaurant – 115 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-1888. Monday – Sunday 11h00 – 15h00, 17h30 – 22h00.
* Tokyo Restaurant & Sushi Bar – 115 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 424-5108. Monday 17h00 – 22h00, Tuesday – Saturday 11h00 – 23h00, Sunday 12h00 – 23h00.
* Saigon – Vietnamese and some Japanese food. corner Kloof/Camp Str. Tel (021) 424-7676. Monday – Sunday 12h00 – 14h30, 18h00 – 22h30.
* Scooters – pizzas, mainly take-away and delivery. Corner Kloof and Union Str. Tel (021) 422-5995. Daily until 20h00.
* Asoka – light meals. 68 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-0909.
* The Slug & Lettuce – Bistro, English style pub, tapas, beers, wines by the glass. 64 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-5325. Monday – Sunday 11h00 – 2h00.
* DaVinci’s – pizzas. Corner Kloof/Camp Str. Tel (021) 424-7504. Daily 11h30 – 23h00.
* Saints on Kloof – burgers and beer! 84 Kloof Street. Tel (021) 424-0030. Monday – Sunday 9h00 – 23h00.
* Toni’s on Kloof Mocambique Portuguese Cuisine – 88 Kloof Str. tel (021) 423-7617. Daily 12h00 – 15h00, 18h00 until late.
* Shelley’s Gourmet Deli –Bistro, health and light meals served. 90 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 424-2740. Monday – Wednesday 8h00 – 16h00, Thursday – Saturday 8h00 – 22h00, Sunday 8h00 – 15h00.
* Melissa’s – Deli, part of a chain. Breakfast and lunch buffet, cakes, coffee. Monday – Sunday. Tel (021) 424-5540. Monday – Friday 7h00 – 19h00. Saturday 8h00 – 19h00. Sunday 8h00 – 18h00.
* Cocoa Oola Café and Pizzeria – Part of the Cocoa group, with other branches in Rondebosch Cocoa Wah-Wah), Observatory (Cocoa Chaa-Chi) and on Foreshore (Cocoa Expresso). Large menu, with pizzas, sandwiches, wraps, breakfast, tramezzinis, burgers, pasta, craft beers, and cocktails served in quirky spacious turquoise and lime green interior. Wireless internet. TV screens. Corner Kloof and De Lorentz Str. Tel (021) 422-3638. Monday – Saturday 7h00 – 23h00, Sunday 8h00 – 20h00.
* 
Tamboers Winkel – farm style kitchen in the city, rotisserie chicken forms foundation for many dishes, increasingly adding sweet treats (cupcakes, macaroons, etc). Also sell charcuterie, free range eggs, Manna Epicure breads, and other deli items (photograph). 3 De Lorentz Str. Tel (021) 424-0521. Tuesday – Friday 9h00 – 20h00, Saturday and Sunday 9h00 – 16h00.
* Jackal & Hide – ‘Continental cuisine’, bar. 108 Kloof Street. Tel (021) 424-1020. Monday – Saturday 15h00 – 24h00.
* Café Paradiso – Part of the Madame Zingara group, beautiful view onto Table Mountain, seating inside and outside, inexpensive comfort food. 110 Kloof Str. Monday – Saturday 8h00 – 22h00, Sunday 8h00 – 14h30. Tel (021) 423-8653
* Manna Epicure – Good breads, cakes and sweet treats, deli. Attractive white cottagey interior. 151 Kloof Str. Tel (021) Tuesday – Sunday 8h00 – 17h00.
* 
Caffe Milano – Milanese pastries, salads, few cooked foods, excellent breakfast (all day on weekends), fabulous Eggs Benedict. Giorgio Nava-owned. 153 Kloof Str. Tuesday – Sunday, 7h00 until 17h00. Tel (021) 426-5566 (photograph).
* Bombay Bicycle Club – wacky-looking inside and outside bohemian decor, also owned by Madame Zingara group. Comfort food, inexpensive. Kloof Str. Tel (021) 423-6805. Monday – Saturday
* Bacini’s Ristorante & Pizzeria – Italian style restaurant. 177 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 423-6668. Monday – Sunday 12h00 – 23h00.
* Liquorice & Lime – Coffee shop, Breakfasts and light meals. 162 Kloof Str. Tel (021) Monday – Friday 7h00 – 17h00, Saturday & Sunday, 7h00 – 17h00.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage
‘Cape Town is more beautiful and dramatic than anything I had imagined’ – The Guardian
Cape Town received wonderful coverage in a three-part article in the UK The Guardian on Saturday, praising in particular the beauty of the city, and the gourmet and wine wealth of the near-by towns in the Winelands, which should be good for attracting visitors from the UK to our city, given the weaker Rand.
The writer of the trio of articles is Gloria Hunniford, a highly regarded mature Northern Ireland radio and TV presenter, writer (including ‘Gloria Hunniford’s Family Cookbook’,) a travel writer for The Guardian and The Telegraph, and presenter of travel guides for National Geographic. In the fineprint it is clear that the articles were sponsored by SA Tourism.
Gloria reports about her first ever visit to Cape Town, a city that she says she has never heard a bad word spoken about, and about which she had heard ‘glorious stories about the weather, the food, the wine, the people and, of course, Table Mountain’. Worried that her high expectations could be disappointed, she writes that ‘it is more beautiful, more dramatic, and more extraordinary than anything I had imagined’. She writes that she was at a loss of words on top of Table Mountain, and fell in love with a dassie.
During her visit to the Cape, Gloria saw the Twelve Apostles, Cape Point, Lion’s Head, the city centre, the floral diversity of 2000 species on Table Mountain, Chapman’s Peak (exhilaratingly experienced on the back of a Harley Davidson), and stayed at the Camps Bay Retreat. She enjoyed the Camps Bay restaurants and its strip and beach, about which she wrote: “…you would be forgiven for thinking you were on a remote, palm-fringed island, not in South Africa’s second most populous city“! She refers to Cape Town being ranked second in the Lonely Planet’s world 10 best beach cities (after Barcelona and ahead of Sydney, Rio de Janeiro, and Miami), an accolade for Cape Town I had not heard about nor seen publicised by our tourism authorities. She mentions the surfing beaches of False Bay, the ‘remote beaches’ of the South Peninsula, ‘fashionable Clifton’, and the ‘sundowner-haven of Llandudno’. She was taken to Bo-Kaap, to eat Cape Malay food at the home of Zainie. She also ate at the Cape Grace, and was served fresh fish in Camps Bay. She highlights Kirstenbosch as the perfect picnic venue, having recently been named by National Geographic as one of the top 10 places in the world to have a picnic.
In the Winelands, Gloria visited L’Omarins in Franschhoek, enjoying its Cape Dutch architecture, flower paradise, and a wine-tasting. Gloria saw a chocolate-making demonstration at Huguenot Fine Chocolates, raving generally about Franschhoek, with its ‘atmospheric shops and sampling the great food and wine on offer is a must for every visitor’s itinerary‘. She had lunch at Delaire Graff, praising it highly for its setting in the Helshoogte Pass: ‘It’s sheer bliss. To be embraced by the sheer luxury of this elegant, beautiful crafted estate, sipping on fabulous wine and indulging in the tastiest food around, is what dream holidays are made off (sic).” 
Then she tastes wines at Spier, calling it one of ‘South Africa’s oldest, biggest and most tourist friendly estates’, and its wines as being affordably priced and winning awards. A highlight for Gloria was stroking Hemingway, the cheetah, at Spier. She enjoyed her gourmet picnic at Warwick, writing about it: ‘Our picnic basket is filled to the brim with delicious salads, cold meats, bread, smoked salmon, and sweet treats, a far cry from the picnics I am used to…. It introduced us to more South African culinary treats, from snoek pate to biltong’.
Despite being sponsored articles, it is Gloria’s concluding paragraph that is sure to connect with potential visitors to our city, and her valuable endorsement should be of benefit to tourism to Cape Town and the Winelands: “The last few days have been happy, happy days, thanks in no small part to the people of South Africa who have been so open and friendly and made us feel so welcome. It is the people of a country who can really make an experience memorable. They are so proud of their country and it is this enthusiasm and South Africa’s sheer beauty that I will take away with me”.
POSTSCRIPT 25/10: Today Cape Town and the Winelands received further favourable coverage, this time in the Mail Online, in an interview with Suzi Perry, BBC motor sports correspondent and presenter of the Channel 5 ‘The Gadget Show’. She described her honeymoon in South Africa last year as her ‘most memorable holiday’, having stayed in Camps Bay (staying at Cape View Villa), went on Safari at Richard Branson’s lodge Ulusaba in Sabi Sands, and went winetasting in Franschhoek, staying at Rickety Bridge. She loved going up Table Mountain, recommending abseiling down it, hiked up Lion’s Head at full moon, raved about the vineyard picnics, she saw whales in Hermanus, and ‘baboons on the cape (sic)’.
POSTSCRIPT 27/10: Cape Town has been selected as runner-up as ‘Favorite City World-wide’ in the Telegraph Travel Awards announced yesterday, won by New York, and alongside Venice. La Residence in Franschhoek was a runner-up with Shangri La’s Barr Al Jissah in Oman for ‘Favorite Hotel World-Wide’, a category won by Villa d’Este at Lake Como in Italy.
POSTSCRIPT 27/10: Cape Town is basking in the spotlight, and now the New York Times has written an article “36 hours in Cape Town’, published on-line today, and to appear in print on Sunday. It opens as follows: “Cape Town overwhelms the senses. Its cultivated side, the bright lights and big buildings of the city centre, collides with its geography – the dazzle and danger of the wind-whipped mountains and the two oceans that embrace it.” Writer Elaine Sciolino writes that prices soared in the city during the World Cup, and that the ‘tourist trade since then has disappointed‘, that some businesses have closed down, and some constructions sites stand unfinished. ‘Despite the grinding poverty in the townships on the city’s outskirts, this is one of the most naturally beautiful places in the world’, she writes. Sciolino’s 36 hours in Cape Town were action-packed, and included a visit to the District Six Museum, the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens, Table Mountain (stating that it is to Cape Town what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris, defining and dominating the ‘cityscape’), dinner at Marco’s African Place, followed by drinks at Café Caprice and clubbing at St Yves in Camps Bay, which has just re-opened. On Saturday it’s an ostrich burger for brunch at the Biscuit Mill, shopping at Greenmarket Square, and then off to ‘wine sipping’ at Groot Constantia, eating sushi at Sevruga in the V&A Waterfront, and then to Asoka on Kloof Street for cocktails, followed by Fiction DJ Bar and Zula Sound Bar. On Sunday morning it’s a drive to Cape Point (Cape of Good Hope), stopping at Simonstown and Boulders’ Beach on the way, returning via Chapman’s Peak. The article links to a travel guide, with accommodation (Mount Nelson and V&A Hotels strongly recommended) and restaurants (Africa Café recommended of all the 27 restaurants listed, but sadly out of date, with Jardine still listed) recommended.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter:@WhaleCottage
Kloof Street Cape Town’s FoodHood, with new additions!
Kloof Street in Gardens must be the city’s most densely populated restaurant streets, there being at least 35 restaurants. With the ‘Name your Hood’ campaign, I propose that Gardens be renamed FoodHood, as there are many other restaurants in streets leading off Kloof Street, and in the Gardens suburb. Frommers’ travel guide calls it “The Dining Mile”.
The restaurant list ranges from inexpensive food on the run (McDonalds, Nando’s, Scooters, and St Elmo’s) to fine Milanese pastries (Caffe Milano), Basque cheesecakes (Chez Chez), the Eat Out Top 20 finalist fine dining Planet Restaurant at the Mount Nelson Hotel, and numerous other restaurants. The street venues offer food served over long hours, meaning that one will always find something to eat on Kloof Street, even if it is late at night. It was my discovery of Chez Chez and Cocoa Oola on Friday that inspired this blogpost about the restaurants on Kloof Street, starting from the bottom of Kloof Street, and working up towards Table Mountain:
* Depasco Café Bakery: Sit-down or take away cooked meals, sandwiches, etc. 8 Kloof Street. Tel (021) 424-7070. Monday – Friday 6h30 – 17h30, Saturday and Sunday 7h30 – 15h00 (Now called Sabrina’s).
* McDonalds – Monday – Sunday, open 24 hours a day.
* Tong Lok Chinese Cuisine: 8 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 423-5552. Monday – Thursday 11h30 – 22h30, Friday 11h30 – 22h30, Saturday 12h00 – 22h30, Sunday 17h00 – 21h30
* Bardelli’s – Italian cuisine, with pizzas. 18 Kloof Str. Tel (021 423-1502. Monday – Thursday 18h00 – 22h00, Friday and Saturday 18h00 – 23h00, Sunday 12h00 – 22h30
* Opal Lounge – probably the most pretentious restaurant in Cape Town. 30 Kloof Str. Monday – Sunday dinner only.
* The Black Pearl Restaurant, Tapas and Cocktail Bar: Newly opened, previously Seven Sins. 39 Kloof Str. 072 127 8831. Monday – Thursday 7h30 – 22h00, Friday 7h30 – 23h00, Saturday 9h00 – 23h00, Sunday 9h00 – 18h00. (Closed down)
* Vida e Caffe – good coffees, light snacks. 34 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 426-0627. Monday – Sunday
* Mozzarella Bar – salads, sandwiches and other dishes all contain … mozzarella, plus Puglia Cheese mozzarella to buy. R10 LavAzza cappuccino excellent value. Some Caffe Milano (sister restaurant) pastries to buy. Giorgio Nava-owned. 51 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-5822. Monday – Saturday 7h00 – 19h00.
* Nando’s : chicken, chicken, chicken! – 42 Kloof Str. Tel (426-0240. Monday – Sunday
* Hudson’s Burger Joint: burgers highly regarded. 69A Kloof Str. Tel (021) 426-5974. Monday – Sunday 12h00 – 23h00
* St Elmo’s: pizza, pasta, as well as salads. 71 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-2267. Monday – Friday 9h00 – 22h00, Saturday & Sunday 9h00 – 22h30 (Closed down, now Mitico).
* Ocean Basket: Part of a seafood chain. 75 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-0322.
* Café Sofia Meze & Tapas: Breakfast and Lunch, part of a chain. 60 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 426-0801.
* Arnold’s on Kloof: Well known for (early) breakfasts, but also large lunch and dinner menu, cocktails, salads, burgers, pasta and sandwiches. 60 Kloof Street. Tel (021) 424-4344. Monday – Friday 6h45 – late. Saturday & Sunday 8h00 – late.
* Planet Restaurant at Mount Nelson Hotel: fine dining, Top 20 Eat Out list. Tel (021) 483-1000
* Van Hunk’s: South African cuisine, comfortable dining. Corner Kloof and Upper Union Str. Tel (021) 422-5422. Monday – Sunday 11h30 – 22h00.
* Royo Kloof Asian Restaurant: 115 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-1888. Monday – Sunday 11h00 – 15h00, 17h30 – 22h00.
* Tokyo Restaurant & Sushi Bar: 115 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 424-5108. Monday 17h00 – 22h00, Tuesday – Saturday 11h00 – 23h00, Sunday 12h00 – 23h00.
* Saigon: Vietnamese and some Japanese food. 110 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 424-7676. Monday – Sunday 12h00 – 14h30, 18h00 – 22h30.
* Scooters: – pizzas, mainly take-away and delivery. Corner Kloof and Union Str. Tel (021) 422-5995. Daily until 20h00.
* Asoka: light meals. 68 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-0909.
* Mason’s Café and Grill: light meals, including Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Free wifi. 64 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 422-5325. Monday – Sunday 9h00 – 22h00. (Closed down)
* DaVinci’s: pizzas. 110 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 424-7504. Daily 11h30 – 23h00.
* Toni’s on Kloof Mocambique Portuguese cuisine: 88 Kloof Str. tel (021) 423-7617. Daily 12h00 – 15h00, 18h00 until late.
* Shelley’s Gourmet Deli: Bistro, health and light meals served. 90 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 424-2740. Monday – Wednesday 8h00 – 16h00, Thursday – Saturday 8h00 – 22h00, Sunday 8h00 – 15h00.
* Melissa’s: Deli, part of a chain. Breakfast and lunch buffet, cakes, coffee. Monday – Sunday. Tel (021) 424-5540. Monday – Friday 7h00 – 19h00. Saturday 8h00 – 19h00. Sunday 8h00 – 18h00.
* Buzz: Light Meals. 96 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 426-2797. Monday – Sunday. (Closed down)
* Cocoa Oola Café and Pizzeria: Part of the Cocoa group, with other branches in Rondebosch Cocoa Wah-Wah), Observatory (Cocoa Chaa-Chi) and on Foreshore (Cocoa Expresso). Large menu, with pizzas, sandwiches, wraps, breakfast (14 options), tramezzinis, burgers, pasta, craft beers, and cocktails served in quirky spacious turquoise and lime green interior. Wireless internet. TV screens. Corner Kloof and De Lorentz Str. Tel (021) 422-3638. Monday – Saturday 7h00 – 23h00, Sunday 8h00 – 20h00.
* 
Chez 2 Chez Cheesecake and Espresso Bar: Newly opened and operated by mother Nicole Baiae and son Chris. Basque theme, with red beret and scarf, red scarf pictures, and strong red decor. Double-shot coffee R13,50 excellent value. Thirteen cheesecake choices (e.g. Tiramisu, Pineapple and coconut, Blueberry sour creams, Palm sugar and Lime, Frozen Peanut Butter, Mint Choc Magic, Killer Kit Kat) at R25, fresh-baked croissants, and brownies offered. Corner Kloof and De Lorentz Str. Tel 082 085 2848. Monday – Friday 7h30 – 17h00, Saturday 8h30 – 14h00, Sunday 9h00 – 13h00.
* Café Paradiso: Part of the Madame Zingara group, beautiful view onto Table Mountain, seating inside and outside, inexpensive comfort food. 110 Kloof Str. Monday – Saturday 8h00 – 22h00, Sunday 8h00 – 14h30. Tel (021) 423-8653
* Manna Epicure: Once a trendy eatery, good breads, cakes and sweet treats, deli. Attractive cottagey interior. 151 Kloof Str. Tel (021) Tuesday – Sunday 8h00 – 17h00.
* Caffe Milano: Milanese pastries, salads, few cooked foods, excellent breakfast (all day on weekends). Giorgio Nava-owned. 153 Kloof Str. Tuesday – Sunday, 7h00 until 17h00. Tel (021) 426-5566.
* Bombay Bicycle Club: wacky-looking inside and outside bohemian decor, also owned by Madame Zingara group. Comfort food, inexpensive. Kloof Str. Tel (021) 423-6805. Monday – Saturday
* Bacini’s Ristorante & Pizzeria: Italian style restaurant. 177 Kloof Str. Tel (021) 423-6668. Monday – Sunday 12h00 – 23h00.
* Liquorice & Lime: Coffee shop, Breakfasts and light meals. 162 Kloof Str. Tel (021) Monday – Friday 7h00 – 17h00, Saturday & Sunday, 7h00 – 17h00.
POSTSCRIPT 11/2: I discovered Myög today, at 103 Kloof Street. 
A fresh-looking outlet serving only frozen yoghurt with fruit and other toppings. The serving staff are French, and the person I spoke to is not allowed to divulge the name of the owner nor the supplier of their yoghurt, fruit or any other ingredients. What do they have to hide? Tastes like Marcels. No website yet, but on Facebook and Twitter (@Myog_SA).
POSTSCRIPT 11/2: Driving down Kloof Street about a week ago, it was sad to see that so many restaurants on this list have closed down: Black Pearl, Buzz, St Elmo’s, Mason’s, Depasco (now Sabrina’s), and Tong Lok. However, Frankie Fenner Meat Merchants, Mitico, and Knead have opened on the street.
POSTSCRIPT 18/2: Chez Chez closed its doors yesterday.
Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage