Deltacrest | WhaleTales Blog by Chris von Ulmenstein

It is very bold to close down two restaurants in Stellenbosch, and to start from scratch in Cape Town. This is what Sarah and Dup du Plessis have done, moving their two Café Dijon restaurants on Plein Street and at Zorgvliet in Stellenbosch into a most beautifully decorated space in the Rockwell Centre on Napier Street in Green Point, serving excellent Bistro food, one of the best French style restaurants in Cape Town.

When I first heard that Café Dijon was moving into the Rockwell Centre, my heart sank for the new venture, thinking that they were taking the space of Camil Haas’ Bouillabaisse, which closed down two years ago. But the Rockwell Hotel that operates from the building has made that space its bar, and created a small restaurant in the ex-Crepe Suzette space.

Café Dijon is in a space that once was a decor shop, facing Anatoli’s. Using In House designer Lawrence Holmes, the restaurant sports three ‘palm tree’ wood-cladded pillars, which not only add a most stunning decor imprint, but also hold downlighters, having a functional role too. The original marble topped bar counter was transported across from the Plein Street branch, as were the bistro-style tables and chairs. In raised sections near the stackable sliding doors new tables have been added, made from beautiful wood with an extra black section added, to make it look like slate. Here the bistro chairs have red striped or black and white check upholstery. A couch with blue and white striped upholstery provides seating for the tables in the lower section. The tables are allowed to show off their beauty and not hidden by a table cloth, but material serviettes and St Tropez cutlery add quality. Cape Herb & Spice Atlantic Sea Salt and Extra Bold Pepper grinders are on each table. Laminated floors look like they are made from wine vats, with names of wine varieties. At the entrance is a wooden structure, partly a ‘canopy’ containing downlighters, as well as a section in which wines can be stored, similar to the racking used to make champagne. Near the bar small white and black floor tiles give an aged Bistro effect. Bunches of San Pellegrino bottles with LED bulbs also create lighting, as do wine bottle-shaped lights hanging over the bar counter. Interesting is a wall with names, which the designers created to honour some of the special people in Dup and Sarah’s life, with some French names added, e.g. Le Roux, Olivier, Du Buisson, and Mouton, to suit the theme of the restaurant. The wall even contains the Zondernaam name, a brand name which Tokara owner GT Ferreira had to kill because it became more popular than its first brand, Dup told me. The walls have a green paint effect. Black canopies with the Café Dijon branding are due to be erected on the two sides of the restaurant. I loved the big black table outside, which has been built around a tree.

The owners of Café Dijon are not French at all, but locals. Johan (’Dup’) du Plessis grew up in the Banhoek valley, and his wife Sarah comes from Somerset West. Sarah trained at Silwood Kitchen and then worked in Monaco for Sir David Brown of Aston Martin fame. Dup grew up in a household in ‘which real men don’t cook’, but he did learn to, and they met at Deltacrest outside Franschhoek. When it burnt down, they decided to open a ‘Thirties style bistro in Stellenbosch, opposite the Town Hall, offering classic French dishes and comfort food, which suited the design of the venue perfectly. Sarah and Dup started Café Dijon four years ago, and chose a cat for their logo, many Bistro’s having an animal name, explained Sarah. In Stellenbosch an edict had banned cats in restaurants in the 1950’s, and Rose Jordaan’s grandmother had a black cat statue erected in front of the Stellenbosch library. They live outside Franschhoek, and both are in the restaurant, Sarah looking after the kitchen until after lunch, while Dup stays on until they close in the evening. Dup had a visitor when I ate there on Thursday, while Sarah was an excellent hostess, checking on her customers regularly.

A blackboard at the door advertised the specials: Angus beef burger R50; seared tuna with basil pesto R120; and the cheese of the day being Dalewood Brie at R60. The menu is printed on cream paper, and one is advised that food allergies should be shared with the waiter, as many dishes contain shellfish, garlic, dairy, or nuts, something one rarely sees on menus of late. Dup is very proud of the Toulouse sausage which they make themselves from pork shoulder, nutmeg, garlic, and white wine, and he insisted that I try it as a starter. Amazingly, Sarah remembered how much I had enjoyed their duck liver paté at their Zorgvliet restaurant more than a year ago, and sent out a taster of it with home-baked ciabatta. The sausage has a very mild taste, in contrast to the strong bite of the Dijon mustard. The sausage dish is usually a Bistro main course, two sausages served with pommes frites, a tomato and onion salad, and Dijon mustard, costing R70. The paté is part of a charcuterie platter, served with parma ham and Felino salami, costing R65. Other starters range from R55 – R 70, including steak tartare, calamari, trout, tomato tart, and marrow bones. Seven salad options include roasted beetroot, a classic Caesar, poached egg and bacon lardons, pear and Parma ham, grilled steak and rocket, and smoked duck breast, none costing more than R75.

Fish dishes are restricted to squid linguine (R75), and steamed West Coast mussels served with a white wine garlic, cream, and parsley sauce (R95). For the main course I ordered from the Bistro section, being pork belly with pommes purée, puy lentils, a pork croquette, an apple and grain mustard jus, and pea shoots (R115), which I had not seen for some time. The Bistro section also offers French onion soup, snails Bordelaise and chicken melanzane (R52 – R76 price range). Duck a L’Orange, served with confit duck leg, cabbage, bacon lardons, and an orange and Van der Hum sauce, sounds delicious, and good value at R120. A number of steak options are also offered, ranging from R115 for 200g Angus beef to R130 for fillet. One can order sauces, vegetables, and salads as extras.

Desserts are very inexpensive at R35, and include Crème Brûlée, caramelised lemon tart, strawberry meringue (Eton Mess style), and chocolate profiteroles with caramel cream. I had a baked apple tartlet with almonds and honey, with a LavAzza cappuccino. The cheese of the week costs R60.

The winelist offers three or four options per varietal, and it is disappointing that vintages are not specified on the paper winelist, which can easily be updated should the vintages run out. Moët et Chandon NV and Veuve Clicquot cost around R550, while Pongracz, Simonsig Kaapse Vonkel, and Graham Beck Brut cost R175. Four Shiraz options are offered, ranging from Thelema’s Elgin Sutherland at R150, to Rust en Vrede at R375. The winelist is dominated by Stellenbosch wines.

Café Dijon will become a welcome stop not only for lunch and dinner, but also in-between meals for a coffee, drinks, and tapas outside, which will be introduced shortly. Ample parking is available underneath the building, on the opposite side. The service from Eric was very good, and there was not one sign that this restaurant had only been open for one week when I ate there. The prices are very reasonable, and Dup and Sarah are hands-on, a definite plus.

POSTSCRIPT 5/9: I popped in for a coffee and a Strawberry Meringue after a concert this evening, and was delighted that the restaurant was so busy. Yet a party of four left angry, saying that the food order was not brought to the table correctly, and that they had been overcharged. The owners had left early, the manager had the night off, and the chef had turned ill, leaving the busy restaurant in the hands of a junior team. This is the second angry complaint we have received in the past week, in both instances the owners not being there. Best is to check if one or both owners will be there when booking.

Café Dijon, Rockwell Centre, Napier Street, Green Point. Tel (021) 418-3910. www.cafedijon.co.za Twitter: @CafeDijonCT Tuesday – Sunday lunch, Tuesday – Saturday dinner.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage

Café Dijon has operated in Stellenbosch for about three years, and its operation there did not impress me. On hearing the praise heaped upon the Stellenbosch restaurant by Michael McKenzie as well as restaurant reviewer JP Rossouw, I decided to try the recently opened Café Dijon @ Zorgvliet, on a wine estate at the foot of the Helshoogte Pass. The co-owner of Café Dijon called it a ‘Boere Bistro’, given its local touch to a French-style bistro, with a seasonal country kitchen.

I had never been to Zorgvliet before, only having read about it in Noseweek in two respects – the neighbours being up in arms about the loud music when they host weddings on the wine estate, and that Nedbank forced the previous owner into an auction, which was to his financial disadvantage. One drives past the function rooms when one arrives, and then down a romantic tree-lined lane, with a lovely fresh country smell that reminded me of mushroom picking on Paarl Mountain as a child. One passes the winery, and the coffee shop and picnic building, around which there are lovely lawns. A little further along is a Cape Dutch building, previously the manor house which housed the Herenhuis restaurant, but now is the Zorgvliet tasting room. Café Dijon @ Zorgvliet has opened in the building that was previously the tasting room, its owners having found the manor house too stiff for the more casual and relaxed atmosphere they wish to create.

The owners of Café Dijon are not French at all, as I thought, but locals. Johan (‘Dup’) du Plessis grew up on a neighbouring farm and his wife Sarah comes from Somerset West. Sarah trained at Silwood Kitchen and then worked in Monaco for Sir David Brown of Aston Martin fame. Dup grew up in a household in ‘which real men don’t cook’, but he did learn to, and they met at Deltacrest outside Franschhoek. When it burnt down, they decided to open a ‘Thirties style bistro in Stellenbosch, opposite the Town Hall, offering classic French dishes and comfort food, which Sarah said suits the design of the venue perfectly.

The restaurant interior is very large, and looks like a tasting room, with barrels on the walls and still having the tasting counter. It was much nicer sitting outside on a lovely pre-winter Saturday afternoon, and here seating is very casual at long green benches and tables, and a few small café-style tables and chairs. Cheap striped placemats are on the table, with Eetrite cutlery. There are no table cloths. French music plays inside, and when I heard Françoise Hardy singing it brought back nostalgic memories of seeing her concert in Cape Town about forty years ago. She is one of Dup’s favourites.

Almost all the waiters were previously employed by the Zorgvliet restaurant, and Wilma was friendly and efficient. It was odd to see a manager hiding inside the restaurant, when all the patrons were sitting outside. She only checked on one’s satisfaction after each course was served, but did not stay outside to check on things generally. Wilma had to ask Sarah some of my questions, so she came to chat, sitting down at the table, and I found her to be very charming, down to earth and passionate about what she is developing at Zorgvliet. She showed me a patch that is to become their vegetable garden, visible from the outside seating. She wore a House & Garden apron, and both she and Dup cook, meaning that one is assured of the best.

There is no printed menu, but a blackboard lists the menu items, which means that what is offered can be changed regularly, depending on what the chefs have in stock. The menu has mainly starter type items, and I chose two of these – a generous serving of duck liver paté (R50), served with redcurrant jelly and toasted baguette, which unfortunately was burnt, so I asked for more of the crispy untoasted baguette, which had been brought to the table with Olyfberg olive oil and balsamic vinegar. This was followed by Norwegian salmon on which was placed a tian of fennel avocado, cucumber and prawn (R60), a lovely fresh summer treat. Other starters include fior de latte caprese, venison springrolls, three-cheese-tartlet with salad, parma ham and melon, and chicken and mango salad, ranging in price from R50 – R65. Sirloin and fillet cost R115, Karoo lamb R130, pork belly R100, braised veal short ribs R110, butternut ravioli and gnocchi bolognaisse (R80), and vongole linguini R90. Desserts cost R30 – R35, and include chocolate mousse, creme brûleé, and home-made ice cream (flavours on Saturday were coffee, condensed milk and Frangelico with walnuts).

The winelist is in a brown plastic cover, and only Zorgvliet wines are available, under the Zorgvliet (R145 for whites and R150 for the reds) and Silver Myn (R110 for whites, R125 for reds) brand names, the latter wines being offered by the glass too, at R25 for the whites and R28 for the red wines. One can order Zorgvliet White, Sauvignon Blanc, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as the Richelle 2005, which costs R500. The Silver Myn is available in Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Viognier, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Cabernet Franc and Pinot Noir. The vintages are listed on the winelist.

The opening of the new Café Dijon @ Zorgvliet has created confusion, with some readers of the restaurant write-up in The Month thinking that the Stellenbosch branch has closed down, Sarah said. They have a good team there, and Sarah and Dup will be mainly based at Zorgvliet, being closer to their home. The menu is similar but not identical at the two Café Dijons.

I was impressed with the food served at Café Dijon @Zorgvliet, but found the venue too large for the few guests. It was lovely sitting outside, and I am not sure how the large venue will work with inside seating on winter days. Chatting to Sarah made all the difference to my enjoyment of being there, and she is a valuable asset that should be connecting to her guests, as she is a good people’s person, and as her manager is not fulfilling this role.

Café Dijon @Zorgvliet, Banhoek Valley, Helshoogte Pass, Stellenbosch. Tel (021) 885-2580. www.cafedijon.co.za (The new Café Dijon @Zorgvliet is not yet on the website). Wednesday – Sunday lunch, Friday and Saturday dinner.

Chris von Ulmenstein, Whale Cottage Portfolio: www.whalecottage.com Twitter: @WhaleCottage