From never having been to eat at Quentin at Oakhurst Barn in Hout Bay, I was lucky to be part of a group of friends who love it so much that I enjoyed one dinner and a Sunday lunch, offering Cape Country Cuisine, both in the same week, earlier this month. I was astounded at this restaurant gem, the best in Hout Bay but also the most hidden, tucked away in a little lane off the Main Road on the way to Constantia, the popularity of this restaurant based purely on word of moth reputation.

Chef Quentin Spickernell opened the restaurant six years ago, in what literally was a barn on Oakhurst Farm, known as a former wine and vegetable farm as well as dairy over a hundred years old, developed by the Dorman family. Chef Quentin is known for having been the private chef to the late Sir Sol Kerzner, the King of Hospitality, with South African roots, who eventually moved to the UK, but always returning to his Leeukoppie home in Hout Bay. Chef Quentin served Kerzner and his family in this role for eleven years, offering a catering service in the periods when Kerzner was not in town. When the Oakhurst Barn became available, he had to have it. Chef Quentin first worked at the President and Peninsula Hotels in Sea Point, learning the kitchen ropes from Chefs Garth Stroebel and John Jackson.

The first sign of Quentin at Oakhurst Farm being unique and unusual is visible when one steps into the building, from a spacious parking area, seeing one large room with a row of imposing crystal chandeliers.  On a closer look, we being guided through the restaurant by Chef Quentin, one is wowed by the decor, all of which was selected by Chef Quentin, the ‘Boer and Brit’ fusion of decor items reflecting his British heritage but his South African love. He proudly showed us a photograph of the dairy, the Barn previously, with an Oakhurst-branded glass milk bottle which was delivered to the homes of the locals in the good old days. There are so many decor items that wagon wheels are hung over framed pictures in the walls. There are numerous tributes to our late President Nelson Mandela, there are framed stamp collections, and many other decor items that could come from local farm homes. There is no air-conditioning, yet on both visits we were not cold at all. A side room houses the Bar, and a wood-fired Oven.

In compliance with the Lockdown Sit-Down Restaurant regulations, our temperature was measured, our hands were sanitized, and our details recorded. Our table was covered with a thick material  covering, and brown paper over that, so that it could be thrown away after each set of guests served, for hygiene reasons. Impressive is that we had material napkins. Some tables have been removed, to allow more space between them, in compliance with Covid regulations.

Dinner at Quentin at Oakhurst Barn 

I met Soren Pontoppidan, a Danish Tour Operator, who has lived in this country for some time,  at my home of dance La Parada Constantia Nek.  Soren is a good networker, and he notified me of the planned dinner, each person to pay for his/her own meal. We were a table of eight, which included a former Danish Foreign Minister Anders and his partner Christina, who had got stuck at a game reserve in the Eastern Cape when Lockdown was announced with three days notice in March.  A treat for me was sitting next to Chef Quentin’s wife Melanie Davidow Spickernell, who could fill me in on many of the details.

What astounded me was how relaxed Chef Quentin was throughout the evening, with a full restaurant, pouring drinks as we arrived, the alcohol ban not yet having been reimplemented, showing us around the Barn, and making time to chat to dinner guests at each table.  Nothing is too much trouble, and something I observed was that he never says ‘No’, and it became clear that in working with Kerzner, this was expected of him too.

Our menu was a paper one, disposable for hygiene reasons, and no comparison to the beautiful brown leather-bound menu which I was given a copy of to take home for writing this story. Chef Quentin apologised for the reduced menu, but as I’d not eaten there previously, six starter, nine main course, and four dessert choices seemed more than ample.

Given the number of persons at our table, a fair number of the dishes were ordered by our table, allowing me to photograph those of the other guests at our table too. Beatrice Holst was part of our party, and is a Vegan, and was delighted that the kitchen prepared special dishes for her, not on their dinner menu.

My starter was a wild mushroom and truffle soup, topped with woodland cream foam (R140), a good start to our dinner. Other starters ordered by our table were fiercely charred snails with a walnut and garlic butter gratin (R105), peri-peri whole squids served with roasted garlic pesto croutons (R130), and a warm roasted baby beetroot and quinoa salad with avocado and chickpea and pistachio salsa (R115). Other starter options are roast marrow bones with goats cheese toasts (R125), and Lobster and prawn bisque swirled with whipped brandy cream (R160). Whilst waiting for the starters to arrive, our waiter brought platters of delicious whole-wheat bread slices, accompanied by fresh farm butter.

I love fish, so I was happy to see roast loin of Kingklip on the menu, served with the signature hazelnut and lemon zest crumble, and with waterblommetjies, fennel, baby tomatoes, and a deglazed butter-pan sauce, the crumble topping giving the fish an unusual taste and crispy texture (R220). Soren sat next to me, and he devoured one of the signature dishes, the wood-fired free-range duck with braised root vegetables, basted with honey, soya, and ginger (R238). Overnight oxtail with green mash potato and a red wine gravy (R165) was also ordered by our table. Other choices are lamb loin T-bone (R170), vegetable curry (R158), bouillabaisse (R245), springbok loin (R185), Mozambique prawn curry (R200), and grilled cauliflower ‘steak’ (R145).

We had eaten so much, the portions being very generous at Quentin’s at Oakhurst Barn, that none of us could order one of the four desserts: Malva pudding with Van der Hum custard (R112), pear and almond tartlets with ice cream (R125), Dark Chocolate Pot (R145), and frozen nougat made with pink rose, pistachio, apricots, dates, pomegranate, fig, and toasted sesame seeds (R122), all delicious sounding.

We had such a special evening, chatting away, in Danish and English, that we left after midnight, Chef Quentin having joined our table after the other diners had left, and offering us a round of tea and coffee. We were shocked and surprised when the Danish couple Christina and Anders had very generously taken care of the bill for the whole table. #Tak.

 

Sunday Lunch at Quentin at Oakhurst Barn

Just two days later, I received a message from Soren, inviting me to join his table for the Sunday Carvery at Quentin’s, on the same basis of each person to pay for his/her own meal.

It was a lovely sunny day, so Soren, Melanie and I chose to sit at an outside table, not officially prepared, but Chef Quentin and his staff set it up for us. We went through the same Covid compliance procedure on arrival. I got to know more about Soren over the lunch, not having chatted one on one before. He was a stage and road manager for very big bands, names dropping ABBA, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton, and the Mandela ‘Give a Minute’ concert in 2001,

The Sunday Carvery at Quentin at Oakhurst Barn is extremely popular amongst his regulars. It was fully booked when we arrived, its value for money price of a three-course meal at R295 per person and R120 per child under 12 years being a Corona special, and also available on a Collection basis from the restaurant. In pre-Lockdown days the Carvery would be served as a Buffet, but as this is not permitted according to Corona Lockdown regulations for Restaurants, the kitchen serves the main course Carvery plated and brings it to the table as such.

There is a choice of starters: the Wild mushroom truffle soup which I had eaten at the dinner earlier in the week; 90 seconds Saldanha Bay mussels ‘tempested’ in white wine, parsley, and garlic; and Sweet potato, avocado, pawpaw and peppadew salad, dressed with a spiced lime and toasted macadamia nut vinaigrette.  Melanie and I both ordered the healthy, attractively presented salad, whilst Soren savoured his mussels, not wanting to let go of his plate.

The Carvery plate is so generously filled that the Yorkshire pudding and duck fat roasted potato were served in separate bowls. Our plates were filled with roast prime rib of beef with horseradish sauce, stuffed roast chicken with cranberry jelly, the stuffing, cauliflower cheese, glazed peas and carrots, and roasted cinnamon butternut… a tummy-full in itself, and a real home-cooked feast.

I could not resist the dessert, seeing the word ‘ice cream’, made with Van der Hum, and accompanied by a Malva pudding as well as a vanilla custard. Mmmmmm, I’ll be going back for more of the unusual ice cream.

 

 

 

The standard menu announces that the Quentin’s staff are paid above the minimum wage.  It offers eight desserts, seven main courses, and seven starters. Many of the standard menu items are offered on the Lockdown menu too, but at reduced prices.

Chef Quentin is not only a good dancer, in which capacity I first met him at La Parada Constantia Nek and danced with him and Melanie many a Sunday night at Dizzy’s in Camps Bay, but he is a host par excellence, a talented interior decorator, and runs a tight ship in the kitchen and front of house, his staff having been with him for many years, and all trained into their restaurant roles by him. He wrote the foreword to the standard Menu, in such beautiful eloquence, that he is talented in writing too, making the description of his dishes on the menu sing. He is kind and generous, and refused to let me pay for the Sunday lunch. Quentin at Oakhurst Barn is a huge success, much loved by its regulars, and it is clear to see why, Chef Quentin being the most humble non-ego chef that I have met in Cape Town. The restaurant has one of THE best and cleanest cloakrooms I have experienced in our city.

Quentin at Oakhurst Barn, 3 Dorman Way, Hout Bay, Cape Town. Tel ((021) 790-4888. www.oakhurstbarn.com

 

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 Instagram: @Chrissy_Ulmenstein