Tag Archives: Okamai Japanese Restaurant

Merchants Café, Bizerca, The Millhouse Kitchen, and more restaurants open!

There are few restaurant openings, and restaurant closures are minimal at present, a good sign of some recovery. This list of restaurant news is updated continuously, as we receive information:

Restaurant Openings

*   Merchants Café has opened on Long Street, opposite Merchants on Long, both belonging to Hanneli Rupert.

*   Luke Dale-Roberts, Eat Out Top Chef at The Test Kitchen, has opened a real test kitchen, called The Kitchen of Dreams, a private experimental place to develop new recipes, at the Old Biscuit Mill.  He is also opening a pop-up Pot Luck Club in Swiss ski resort Verbier, at the Hotel Farinet, from 8 December – April, to be run by him, his chef Nicolas Wilkinson, and front of house Selena Afnan-Holmes.

*   Col’Cacchio has opened a new outlet in Westlake, and new ones are coming in Claremont and Hermanus.

*   New Vida é Caffe new branches are to open on Maindean Place in Claremont, at the new Wembley Square 2 development, at The Paddocks, Groote Schuur, and Roeland Street.  Two more branches are planned for Mauritius.

*    Honest Chocolate is opening a second outlet, a ‘production kitchen’ in the Woodstock Industrial Centre

*   Moyo has opened, where the Paulaner Braühaus was in the V & A Waterfront.

*   TRUTH Coffee has opened on Buitenkant Street

*   FEAST is to open where Franschhoek Food Emporium was, in Place Vendome

*   Okamai Japanese Restaurant has opened at Glenwood wine estate in Franschhoek

*   Cavalli restaurant is said to open on the stud farm on R44, between Stellenbosch and Somerset West, this year or next

*   Stables at Vergelegen Bistro has opened as a lunch restaurant in Somerset West.  Its Lady Phillips Restaurant is being given a make-over by Christo Barnard, and will open with a new name Camphors at Vergelegen. The new chef will be PJ Vadas, previously of The Roundhouse in Camps Bay.

*   Chef Johan van Schalkwyk has left the Stone Kitchen at Dunstone Winery, and has opened his own restaurant Twist Some More in Wellington.

*    Chef Bjorn Dingemans has opened The Millhouse Kitchen restaurant on Lourensford wine estate in Somerset West.

*   Down South Food Bar, previously on Long Street, is said to re-open in the Riverside Centre in Rondebosch

*   David Higgs (ex Rust en Vrede) has opened Five Hundred,  a new 30 seater restaurant in The Saxon in Johannesburg.

*   Cousins has opened in the Parliament Hotel, where Il Cappero used to be.

*   No. 6 Restaurant at Welbedacht has opened at Welbedacht/Schalk Burger & Sons wine estate in Wellington, run by the ex-owners of Oude Wellington

*   Café Dulce is to open a new branch in Tygervalley Centre

*   Gourmetboerie has opened at the bottom end of Kloof Street, where Depasco used to be.

*   Kushi Indian Restaurant has opened a branch on Main Road in Sea Point

*   Thai Café is opening on Plein Street, Stellenbosch

*   Simply Asia has opened in Paarl

*   Bellini’s is said to be opening on Greenmarket Square

*   Moksh Authentic Indian Cuisine restaurant has opened in Paarl

*   Vino’s has opened in Wellington

*   Alfama’s has opened on Waterkant Street

*   Taj Mahal has opened in Sea Point

*   It’s a House is to open on Jarvis Street, as a bar, coffee shop, and design art space.

*   Lion’s Head Bar is to open on Bree Street, selling craft beer and food

*   An Indian restaurant is to open in the original Madame Zingara building on Loop Street, by the Madame Zingara Group

*   The Caviar Group has opened three new restaurants in the Gateway Centre in Umhlanga: Beluga, Sevruga, and Osetra

*   A new bar and Café is to open underneath the Cape Royale Luxury Hotel, where Bamboo used to be

*   Cattle Baron has opened in Hermanus, and at Pontac Manor in Paarl.

*   Café Blanc de Noir has opened on Brenaissance wine estate in Stellenbosch

*    The Reserve is said to be opening a beach restaurant in the V&A Waterfront.

*   Chef Nic van Wyk, previously with Terroir, has opened a restaurant at Diemersdal in Durbanville.

*   Lizette’s Kitchen has opened in Vöelklip, Hermanus.

*   Paulina’s Restaurant has opened at Rickety Bridge in Franschhoek

*   Ocean Jewel Deli has opened at Woodstock Junction

*   Buitenverwachting has opened Coffee Bloc Coffee Shop and Roastery

*  Wakaberry is opening on Kloof Street, and has opened in Stellenbosch

*   Rock Sushi Thai has opened in Meadowridge

*   Jimmy Jimanos sports bar is opening on Long Street

*   Dolcé Bakery has opened in St John’s Piazza in Sea Point

*   The Salzburger Grill has opened in Sea Point

*   Sacred Ground is opening as a Deli and Bakery in The Square in Franschhoek at the end of November

*   The Stall has opened as a Bar and Family Café in the old Pippin Farm Stall, at the entrance to Franschhoek, owned by Essence owner

*   The Rotisserie at Leopard’s Leap has opened.

*   Burger King will open its first South African branch in Cape Town next year!

*  A coffee shop, chocolaterie, bar, and fashion boutique will open in a 3-storey building on Long Street in February, as yet unnamed.

*   The Beer Bar is to open on Long Street

* Eataria is to open on Long Street

*   Portuguese restaurant Alfama has opened on Bree Street

*   Shimmy Beach Club is to open in the V&A Waterfront in December, involving Chef Seelan Sundoo.

*   McDonald’s is opening new branches in Cape Town, in Wynberg, Lansdowne, and Claremont

*   The Red Table Restaurant at Nederburg has opened for lunches Wednesday – Sunday

*   Wilderer Distillery and La Grapperie at Spice Route restaurant are opening in Spice Route wine estate, in addition to their existing location

*   Tridici has opened on the N2 near Swellendam.

*   TriBakery is to open near Moyo in the V&A Waterfront

*   Kloof Street House has opened, where the Opal Lounge was

*   Latitude33 has opened on Bree Street

*   Antipasto Bar has opened at the new Anthonij Rupert Wines tasting room, where Graham Beck used to be, outside Franschhoek

*  Luke Dale Roberts is continuing his expansion trail, and is opening in the current Long Street Café next year.

*   Mischu: The Coffee Showroom has opened on Regent Road in in Sea Point.

*   Urban Café Sushi & Asian Cuisine to open in the old Cape Quarter.

Restaurant Closures

*   The Kove in Camps Bay has closed down, its space has become part of sister restaurant Zenzero

*   Sinnfull has closed down in Sea Point and Camps Bay

*   Liam Tomlin Food has closed down in Franschhoek

* Planet Green Salad has closed down

*   Illyria in the Eikestad Mall has closed down

*   Freedom Hill Restaurant has closed down.

*   Wale Rose Lifestyle has closed down in Bo-Kaap.

Restaurant staff/venue changes

*  Table Thirteen has reduced in size in Green Point and will open in Paarden Eiland later this year.

*   The V&A Waterfront Food Court is closed for renovations until November.  A sign outside the construction area lists the following businesses moving into or returning to the area: Primi Express, Anat, Carnival, Nür Halaal, Royal Bavarian Bakery, KFC, Boost Juice, Simply Asia, Steers, Debonairs, Subway, Marcel’s, and Haagan Dazs.  Nando’s is also opening.

*   Fyndraai Restaurant will move to another building on the wine estate in November, and will offer fine dining.  The current restaurant will serve light lunches and picnics.

*   Chef Andrew Mendes from ex-Valora is now at Nelson’s Eye restaurant, where they are setting up a lunch section and cocktail bar upstairs.

*   Giulia’s Food Café Restaurant has opened where Miss K was on Main Road, Green Point. Now serve Italian-style lunch and dinner, but have retained some Miss K breakfast and pastry items.

*   Having bought the farm about 18 months ago, Antonij Rupert Wines has taken over the Graham Beck Franschhoek property. They will re-open the tasting room, initially offering all its Antonij Rupert, Cape of Good Hope, Terra del Capo, and Protea wines to taste.  They are renovating the manor house, to which the Antonij Rupert and Cape of Good Hope wines will be moved for tasting at a later stage.

*   Orphanage is expanding into a property at its back, opening on Orphan Street, in December, creating a similar second bar downstairs, and opening Orphanage Club upstairs, with 1920’s style music by live performers

*   MondeVino Restaurant at Montecasino in Johannesburg, the MasterChef SA prize for the next two years, is to be renamed Aarya, and is to be run by Chef Deena Naidoo from November onwards.

*   Bizerca has moved into the ex-Gourmet Burger space in Heritage Square on Shortmarket Street.

*   Marcellino’s has changed its name to EuroHaus, with a Zerban’s style restaurant added to the bakery.

*   Crêpe et Cidre has closed down in Franschhoek. Gideon’s The Famous Pancake House has opened in its space.

*   Brampton winetasting bar on Church Street, Stellenbosch has trebled its current size

*   Chris Marais is the new chef at Blaauwklippen, previously with The Oyster Box

*   Phil Alcock is the new chef at Two Oceans Restaurant at Cape Point, having previously worked at The Cape Grace, The Showroom, maze, and more

*   Albert van der Loo, previously with Le Coq and Dieu Donne restaurants in Franschhoek, is the new Head Chef at Oude Werf Hotel in Stellenbosch.

*   Chef Emile Fortuin, who was at Reuben’s Robertson for a very short time, has left and moved to Tokara

* Camil and Ingrid Haas (ex Bouillabaisse and Camil’s) have returned to Franschhoek, with the view to get involved in a restaurant

*   Chef Cheyne Morrisby has left the Mantella Group (owners of Blake’s and ex-Opal Lounge), and is starting his own pop-up restaurant.

*   Tiaan van Greunen is the new Executive Chef at Reuben’s at The Robertson Small Hotel, after the departure of Emile Fortuin

*   Alex von Ulmenstein is the new Restaurant Manager at Indochine, at Delaire Graff Estate.  Raymond Brown has left Reuben’s Franschhoek, and is the new Maitre’D at Indochine.

*   Zelda Oelofse is the new Manager of Harvest Restaurant at Laborie, having taken over from Yolanda Prinsloo.

*   Maryna Frederiksen is the new Executive Chef at The Franschhoek Kitchen at Holden Manz.

*   The ex-Caveau owners are said to be taking over the running of the Twankey Bar of the Taj hotel.

*   Sand at The Plettenberg hotel has changed its name to Seafood at The Plettenberg.

*   Lasse Presting is the new Manager of the Haute Cabriere restaurant

*   Chef Alistair Lawrence has taken over from Fernando Romano at 5 Rooms at The Alphen Hotel

*   De Oude Bank Bakkerij is expanding, and will open a retail section selling charcuterie, fresh meats, home-made ice cream, and wines, collectively called De Companje, from February

*   Taste restaurant has moved to Bilton Wines

*   Bar1 has opened where Sunbird Bistro was in Camps Bay.

*   Oppie Dorp has opened where Cognito was on Dorp Street in Stellenbosch.

*   Kloof Street House has opened where Opal Lounge used to be.

Restaurant breaks

*   Massimo’s is closing between 6 – 15 November.

*   The Pot Luck Club is closed until it re-opens in its new venue in the Old Biscuit Mill in January.

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

Okamai Japanese Restaurant: Umami in the Japanese food and GlenWood wines!

One of the most unique restaurant experiences was the opening of the new Okamai (meaning ‘home-brewed hospitality’) Japanese Restaurant at GlenWood wine estate in Franschhoek on Thursday evening.  It is a unique marriage of the Umami in the delectable Japanese food created by Sensei (meaning teacher) Deon de Jongh, and the special GlenWood wines created by winemaker DP Burger.

PR consultant Erica Liebenberg and DP welcomed us at the GlenWood reception with a glass of Morena Rose Brut.  The Japanese touch was immediately evident, with Sensei Deon’s wife Rayne wearing a kimono.  We moved through to the tasting room with a welcome fireplace on a still chilly Spring evening, from which we only saw the branding on the ‘noren’ , or hanging cloth, which was the first lesson we learnt in Japanese culture, in that there are no closed doors, denoting the sacred space between the different sections of the restaurant and kitchen. The writing on the entrance noren, replicated on the serviette, was the greeting: ‘We bid you welcome’. Between the kitchen and the scullery and pantry there is another noren, visible in the photograph of Sensei Deon. I slipped into the restaurant while the others were still tasting the wines, and noticed the bonsai on a side table, a collection of ornamental swords, a decorative holder for the swords, and a picture of a Samurai ‘Grand Master long passed’, with decorative lettering written by the Emperor’s calligrapher, with wording ‘The fighting spirit through harmony and respect’, Sensei explained.  He was dressed in a black chef’s outfit, but with Japanese touches.  He has the most charming smile, looking at peace and in harmony, and reminded me of Chef Reuben Riffel. The word ‘humility’ was used a number of times at our table to describe the Sensei.

Sensei Deon studied 16th century samurai swordmanship in Japan, and lived in that country for 27 years.  Once one has passed the highest level of swordmanship, ‘they entrust you to cook’. Sensei studied the Japanese and western style of sushi creation for 15 years.  Erica told me that the Sensei has written Japanese novellas, being collections of stories related to him while he lived there.  He has also founded and run a school of martial arts in New York, is a motivational speaker and life coach, and was awarded a Nelson Mandela Momento for his contribution to social upliftment and better relations, the website states.

Alistair Wood is the owner of GlenWood, which he bought 28 years ago, and DP has been his winemaker and General Manager for 22 years. They share the same long term vision and focus.  Alistair told us that DP is a fourth generation Franschhoeker, and his great-grandfather saw the last elephant leave the Franschhoek valley in 1856. Alistair and his partner Nikki de Havilland were regular customers of the Japanese restaurant which Sensei had opened on the Franschhoek main road, and invited Sensei Deon to open his restaurant on their wine estate when he closed the village restaurant.  They were excited about the good pairing between Sensei Deon’s food and their wines, a good marriage of the umami in both, and ‘between Japanese boutique cuisine on a boutique winery‘, said Nikki.  The word ‘umami’ was mentioned a number of times, and it is the fifth sense, with sweet, sour, salty, and bitter, an element discovered by a Chinese scientist 1200 years ago, we were told.  Umami was found to be an ‘indescribable’ taste in seaweed, and described as being ‘addictive’.

The restaurant can only seat 16 customers at a time, because the Sensei prepares everything fresh, and therefore booking is recommended. However, the kitchen is open from 12h00 until closing time, so one is not restricted to only eating there at traditional lunch and dinner times.  While GlenWood wines are served, one can also order Japanese beer and sake.  ‘Oshibori’ is ‘to clean the hands for the meal one is about to receive’, and a cloth was brought to each guest, and after we returned it to a hostess, we were told that the correct way of doing so would be to roll it up as we had received it: ‘By the way it is received you will return it’, we were told.  Nikki invited us to be ‘adventurous’ in our eating.

Before the meal, Sensei spoke an appreciation ‘of the journey of the food before me’, and ‘I honour your journey and my journey for being here’, acknowledging the uniqueness of the Sensei and customer connecting at that time and space.  He also told us that the Japanese customer would meet the chef before committing to the table, to ‘get a feel of his intentions’ which could harm one if the chef has negative energy or is in a bad space. Should the customers pick up negativity in the chef, they would leave.

We started with a Miso soup (R20), and Sensei Deon taught us how to hold the bowl on the tips of our fingers, and drink from it by slurping, this being how soup is drunk by the Japanese. The Miso soup is a traditional start to the meal, keeping the Japanese healthy, and is made with Dashi stock and has chunks of tofu, and was paired with the GlenWood Sauvignon Blanc 2011.  Miso soup is a good preparation for the meal to come, and an excellent way to counter a hangover, we were told. Thereafter we were served a black Bento Box (meaning ‘lunch box’ ) with a red edging, looking very smart, and with compartments inside for the different foods.  The Bento Box contained the following:

*   ‘Edo Unadon‘, eel meal, paired with the GlenWood Unwooded Chardonnay 2011 – there is no such thing as a ‘California Roll’, Sensei said. This dish costs R62.

*   Sashimi, cut and seared salmon, which was paired with GlenWood’s flagship wooded Vigneron’s Selection Chardonnay 2011

*   The Tempura prawn was described as being high in umami, and was paired with the GlenWood Semillon 2010 (4 prawns cost R34)

*   Chicken dumplings were paired with the GlenWood Merlot 2009 (4 chicken dumplings cost R32)

*   Salmon Roses were paired with the GlenWood Shiraz 2009 – this should be made from the tail of the salmon, which contains the sweetest part, Sensei said.

Rice should be prepared a day in advance, we were told. Wasabi only has a three hour life span, and should never be bought in a tube, we were advised.  Wasabi should never be mixed with soy sauce, as it loses its health benefits.  A leaf of ginger should be eaten in-between courses to clear the palate.  Kewpie mayonnaise should be Japanese and not Chinese, being more healthy.  Sushi means ‘finger food’. The meal as we had it, with the Miso soup and Bento Box, costs R170. One can also order Temaki handrolls at R38 – R53; 6-piece Makimono at R33 – R47; 8-piece Uramaki ‘inside-out rolls’ at R55 – R68; 2-piece Nigiri at R31 – R43; 2-piece Inari R 33 – R45; salads from R40 – R48; 4-piece sashimi R50; two salmon roses at R45; and 4-piece fashion sandwiches at R43 – R55.

The dinner was concluded with a Japanese crepe containing thinly sliced strawberry and banana, and cream. We were told to close the Bento Box when we finished eating, and return it to the hostess, to prevent her from having to lean over the guest to clear the table. Traditionally, hostesses were used to ‘eavesdrop’, to obtain secrets from guests eating by overhearing their conversation, information which was used competitively in warfare.  The best time to eat Japanese food is from 13h00 – 17h00, when the digestion and metabolism are at their optimum, Sensei said.  We were advised to eat only 80% of the meal, and then take a breather before finishing the meal.

Alistair and I talked about the new wine range that will be launched, and without giving away any secrets, he shared that he is excited about an idea which came to him while travelling through France for three months in our winter, being that Franschhoek is well-suited to make a Sauternes noble rot ‘sweet wine’ in the style of Chateau d’Yquem.  Watch this GlenWood space!

Okamai is an educational experience.  It serves ‘cuisine based on ‘Wakon-yosai, an ideal of adopting and applying western learning and knowledge in confirming the native cultural traditions, creating a familiar & authentic blend of known and traditional dishes’, the Okamai website relates.  Sensei Deon is most charming, and he makes eating at Okamai a fascinating experience, given the personal attention that he can pay to his 16 guests at a time.

Disclosure: We received a bottle of GlenWood Merlot 2009 with the media kit.

POSTSCRIPT 25/1: Sensei Deon sent an e-mail this evening, announcing that he left Okamai at Glenwood on 20 January: “I trust you all are doing well and had a good festive season. I am emailing to let you know I am no longer at Okamai…I resigned January 1st 2013…and Sunday January 20th was my last day…for many reasons not known to many..and such It need remain to preserve the integrity of others and the code of samurai conduct that mandate my discreetness and reasons :-). The Very Best Regards & Care. Whereto from here?…I do not know…but shall keep you posted..at GlenWood it is business as usual as they have indicated with the employ of a new sushi cook. Thank you Deeply for your past association and support. Kiyomasu Deon Sensei. 076.997.3786”

Okamai Japanese Restaurant, GlenWood wine estate, Robertsvlei Road, Franschhoek.  Tel (021) 876-2044. www.glenwoodvineyards.co.za www.okamaijapan.com Tuesday – Sunday, from 12h00 – 21h00.  Booking advisable.

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