Tag Archives: The Alphen

Restaurant openings in Cape Town and Winelands continue: October 2016!

villa-47-restaurant-daytimeSeptember has seen the opening of new restaurants Restaurant at Villa 47, La Parada and Harbour House at Constantia Nek, Wolfgat, Tiger’s Milk Claremont, Tea in the Park, Open Wine Pair Shop and more, with a number of October openings imminent.

We update information about newly opened and closed restaurants continuously, and welcome information.

Restaurant Openings

#    Villa 47 has opened on Bree Street, with Locanda restaurant on the ground floor.  Stuzzico Italian finger-food and bar has opened on the second floor. Cool contemporary The Restaurant at Villa 47 on the third floor has opened, Continue reading →

Diners Club salutes top Western Cape winelists, Bushman’s Kloof judged best!

Diners Club Winelist banner Whale CottageThe Diners Club Winelist Awards for the Western Cape were held at Shimmy Beach Club yesterday, saluting the restaurants in the province, and the standard of their winelist content and presentation. Bushman’s Kloof won best Winelist in the Western Cape.  During the course of this week the Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal awards will also be presented.

A judging panel, led by wine judge Dave Hughes, and consisting of Winnie Bowman, Nikki Dumas, Fiona McDonald, and Christine Rudman, evaluated 208 winelists nationally, and 100 from the ‘Cape‘, a province which has not existed for years!  Diners Club threw the Western Cape and Eastern Cape into one ‘Cape’ pot in reporting on the results and in handing out the awards yesterday!  A substantial number of Western Cape restaurants did not enter the competition this year, down from 96 entries last year to 80 this year.

Odd was the choice of venue, being the Bar section of Shimmy Beach Club, which did not have Diners Club Pongracz Whale Cottageenough parking for the attendees, some walking for more than 1 km to get to the venue.  We were welcomed with a glass of Pongracz, and the food was very meagre, being macaroni cheese croquettes and sushi!  There was not enough seating for everyone, in a room which had some round tables, a few chairs and couches, but had no presence in making this function special for the award winners, compared to the venue used at the Vineyard Hotel last year.  It also was not a finalist for the Winelist Awards! Very odd was using Anna Trapido as the MC, not generally known to the local restaurant wine stewards and sommeliers, in being the editor of the 2015 ‘Diners Club Rossouws Continue reading →

New Lanique Bar within Andiamo to add pink spirit to De Waterkant!

Lanique Liqueur Spirit !cid_image001_jpg@01CF9154A spirit liqueur with a more than 200 year history is set to light up trendy De Waterkant, when a bar in its name opens within Andiamo in the original Cape Quarter next month.  The history and richness of the Lanique brand will match the heritage of De Waterkant, which is one of the oldest suburbs of Cape Town.

The Lanique Bar within Andiamo is a collaboration between Nigel Price and Andiamo owner Bruce Walker, who got to know each other as Nigel’s company aqua v supplies Andiamo. Andiamo previously had a delicatessen inside the restaurant, and when Bruce did the sums as the new owner, he worked out that it was not lucrative.   Nigel had been offered the rights to distribute Lanique in South Africa, and a brainstorm between the two led to the idea that the Lanique Bar within Andiamo be established.

Nigel walked me through the previous Deli space, which is being cladded with red brick, to give the space an old world feel.  A stage for live music, a dance floor created by moving the tables out of the space into Andiamo, a door separating Andiamo restaurant and Lanique Bar within Andiamo when the restaurant closes at night, old timber ship decking, corrugated iron, floating shelves, rich opulent fabrics for the upholstery of the chairs, new tables, and chandeliers are planned to create an old world and opulent luxury feel. During the day the Lanique Bar counter will be closed off, but breakfast and lunch will be served and its coffee Continue reading →

Many restaurant openings in Cape Town and Winelands contrary to past winter trend!

Chef's Warehouse Street Food logo Whale Cottage PortfolioCape Town is seeing an amazing number of restaurant openings in mid-winter, a time during which one expects the opposite, it being usual to see restaurant closures.  Although a concern to some, we are seeing a rise in restaurant entrepreneurs, opening more than one restaurant in Cape Town, including Neil Grant with business partner Barry Engelbrecht (opening on Bree Street, as well as at the former River Café; Michael Townsend of the Harbour House Group, who must be the fastest restaurant-opener at the moment, also bringing star Chef Andres Conde from Michelin star restaurants in Spain to Cape Town; and grumpy Giorgio Nava, who is opening two Carne restaurants shortly! This list of restaurant openings and closings is updated continuously, as we receive new information:

Restaurant Openings

*    Chef’s Warehouse & Canteen has opened Street Food below the neighbouring hotel, offering Deluxe coffee, pastries, and Asian-inspired lunch take-outs. Operates from 7h00 – 15h00.

*   Idiom Wines is said to be opening a restaurant.

*   Lucky Fish & Chips has opened on Bree Street, on Regent Road in Sea Point, on Long Street, in Kalk Bay, and in Muizenberg, belonging to Harbour House group.  

*   The Butcher Shop & Grill is opening next to Sotano in Mouille Point.

*   Ragafellows has opened on Main Road in Hout Bay.

*   The Dogfather has opened in Sea Point.

*   The Restaurant at Cape Point Vineyards has opened, with Chef Clayton Bell of the former Constantia Uitsig Continue reading →