When I first heard that Pilcrow & Cleaver had opened on Parliament Street last year, I couldn’t get my tongue around its unusual name, and it seemed to be out of the way relative to where I normally go if I am in the City centre. After a first chance visit during Lockdown, I was hooked, when I bought a Take-Home meal of duck spring rolls, and can’t miss visiting the small cosy open-plan restaurant when I am in town, always being able to find parking near the Groote Kerk. On Sunday evening I enjoyed my first Sit-Down meal at Pilcrow & Cleaver, as a birthday celebration for my friend Katie Friedman, having previously collected freshly-made dishes from the restaurant to take home.

Owner and Chef Judi Fourie runs a tight show, almost always present, is humble and a little shy, but the more I’ve visited, the more I have got to know about her. She offers a selection of meals, including Breakfast (not yet experienced), small plate dishes, main courses, Sunday Roast, and Desserts, all at very good value for money. She uses flowers as the theme to decorate her weekly menus, available either digitally via QR code, or laminated and wiped down regularly, displayed on a counter so that one does not need to touch them. Plants feature strongly in her Decor too, dramatically presented by panels of wallpaper.

Chef Judi previously worked at Zenzero, the V&A Hotel and Kitima. She explained that the restaurant is a new beginning for her, and hence the unusual word ‘Pilcrow’, which is defined as ‘a symbol used to mark a new paragraph or section of text’.  This is in strong contrast to the ‘Cleaver’, a butcher’s knife, not something one would associate with such a petite female chef.  Bravely she has just opened a restaurant in Pretoria, called Judith Fresh Café.

When we arrived we went through the Covid compliance regulations, having our temperature taken, our hands were sanitised, and our details entered into a register. What was great for us was that we were the only diners in the restaurant, so we received fabulous hands-on Service from Chef Judi. We were shown the Drinks list, and I heard the term ‘Gintails’ for the first time. Being the birthday girl, Katie ordered an A Mari Aperol with bubbles (R87), while I felt like a glass of red wine.  I had not heard of the Robert Alexander Shiraz nor the La Brune The Valley Pinot Noir 2019 (R75 per glass), and Chef Judy immediately offered to open both, so that I could taste them. I settled for the La Brune, which she told me comes from the Elgin Valley. The name means ‘The Brunette’ in French, and this feminine wine ‘is pure and wears no makeup’, its website describes. Words used to describe the wine include finesse, freshness, restraint, purity, and elegance, making this wine choice even more special.

While we waited for our dishes, we were given a nibble of olives, and the drinks were served, Katie and I catching up on her birthday celebration week.

Katie chose three Small Plate dishes, and I one, which we shared. She loved the White bean, potato, chorizo, and kale soup (R65). Her second dish was Crispy Seafood, a mix of deep-fried octopus, baby squid, white bait, and prawns, served with a potato saffron dipping sauce (R90). I had ordered this dish as a Take-Away two days earlier, and loved it. Her third choice was the most delicious Dhal (made with red split lentils, ginger, garlic, and turmeric) fritters served with minted chunky peas (R45), a most unusual combination, and a lovely presentation.  My choice was Hoisin and Honey chicken lollipops (R55), prepared sous vide, and coated in sesame seeds, the sauce making this dish so special. My next choice was the Sunday Roast, with delicious medium roast lamb, served with sweet potato, duck fat roast potato, smashed potatoes, carrots, beetroot, and mint sauce and gravy. (R160). I loved that the vegetables were kept separate and not chopped up into a mix, the carrots taking centre stage of the presentation on the plate.

Last week Lamb Ravioli was an additional Small Plate choice. Large Plate options included Ribeye (R180), an Abalobi Fish of the Day (R160), a Plate of Prawns (R180), and the P&C Burger (R110).

When I booked the dinner, Chef Judi immediately suggested a birthday cake, something I had not even thought of, and I was happy that she did, as Katie told me that it was her first cake during her celebration week. A small Valrhona chocolate cake with mauve silver icing and an endless burning candle ended off our meal, a generous gift from Chef Judi. Dessert options on last week’s Menu were Wo-Nuts (doughnut waffles with salted caramel and peanuts) at R55, and a chocolate spring roll, at R25.

Pilcrow & Cleaver has a second restaurant section next door, in which one can eat at a booth, or take over the whole section for a private event. We chose to eat inside the main restaurant, with its open-plan kitchen and its food preparation sounds blending with the background music.

We enjoyed a lovely birthday celebration dinner, ate excellent food, drank a very good wine, all offered with good service and very good value for money. An unusual note on the restaurant’s website is that it is proudly non-tipping, paying its staff well enough. The restaurant is open daily, and serves Sit-Down meals, as well as offering a Delivery and Collection Service.

 

Pilcrow & Cleaver, 3.2 Piazza, Parliament Street, Cape Town. Cell 072 897 3213 www.pilcrowgroup.co.za Instagram: @pilcrowcleaver    9h00 – 18h00 Daily. 

 

About Chris von Ulmenstein

Chris von Ulmenstein, WhaleTales Blog: www.chrisvonulmenstein.com/blog Tel +27 082 55 11 323 Twitter:@Ulmenstein Facebook: Chris von Ulmenstein, My Cape Town Guide/Mein Kapstadt Guide Instagram: @Chrissy_Ulmenstein @MyCapeTownGuide