{"id":88371,"date":"2017-05-24T13:22:24","date_gmt":"2017-05-24T11:22:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chrisvonulmenstein.com\/blog\/?p=88371"},"modified":"2017-05-25T23:02:23","modified_gmt":"2017-05-25T21:02:23","slug":"cafe-racer-serves-a-large-variety-of-racy-and-creative-burgers-in-somerset-west","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chrisvonulmenstein.com\/blog\/cape-town\/cafe-racer-serves-a-large-variety-of-racy-and-creative-burgers-in-somerset-west\/","title":{"rendered":"The Caf\u00e9 Racer serves a large variety of racy and creative burgers in Somerset West!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"I was invited by Chef Jan Kruger of The Caf\u00e9 Racer to visit his restaurant in Somerset West, and try some of his newest burger creations. I had no idea that the restaurant would be dedicated to motorcycles, the passion of Chef Jan, in addition to his passion for cooking.<\/p>\n

As it was my sister’s birthday and I do not get to Somerset West very often, I asked whether my \"\"sister could join me. My sister’s school friend Gudrun Clark joined us in the last minute, so it turned out to be a celebratory birthday lunch.  I ran late due to a dreadful traffic blockage near the airport, so called the restaurant from the car, and asked Mika if she could offer my sister and her friend some bubbly already. She told me that they do not serve sparkling wine, but that Chef Jan would go to the bottle store next door, and buy a bottle of bubbly. The Boschendal Brut Ros\u00e9 was on ice when I arrived, and Chef Jan poured it for us. <\/p>\n

From the minute one steps into The Caf\u00e9 Racer one sees motorcycles, to the right of the staircase as one enters, on the wall art relating to motorcycles, and on the walls \"\"throughout the three rooms of the restaurant, one room with tables and chairs, another with the bar offering mainly craft beers, and a third room with the coffee bar. A terrace attracted Chef Jan’s interest when he considered the building on the Main Road in Somerset West, with its lovely view onto three mountain ranges. <\/p>\n

The upstairs space also houses a tattoo artist and a boxing gym at the back, in addition to the restaurant as one enters. <\/p>\n

A rebuilt antique 1903 model Indian Machine motorcycle, a predecessor to the Harley Davidson, stood near our table, and had a beautiful sleek design. Every wall is covered with motorcycle pictures, gloves,\"\" and other motorcycling paraphenalia. <\/p>\n

Chef Jan explained the Caf\u00eb Racer concept to me, as follows: ‘So the term \u201cCafe Racer\u201d basically translates to \u201ccustomized bike\u201d – \u201cbike with modifications\u201d – \u201cunique bike\u201d. The movement started in Britain after the Second World War. The boys that came back home after the war obviously had a lot of training (mechanically) and needed a way to release their need for adrenaline \u2013 they would modify mid-size-engines to gain insane levels of performance out of them and then race one another on public roads. So in Britain you had the Cafe Racer-movement and in America they started the Hot Rod-movement. The ultimate accolade would be for your bike to reach \u201cThe TON\u201d \u2013 a slang term for your modified motorcycle to reach 100mph. The movement died down in the late 60\u2019s when Britain fought its way out of financial depression and then in the late 90\u2019s it came back with huge popularity. Today, Cafe Racers are more focused on \u201cthe look\u201d-modification instead of being performance-based. Cafe Racers are beautiful and shows off a true reflection of the owner\u2019s vision<\/i>‘.<\/p>\n

Chef Jan chose The Beehive building as the venue for his restaurant. At first he was put off by its dilapidated state, but on his third visit he saw the potential of its New Orleans-style balcony, and bringing life back to this older part of Somerset West. To make its mark, the restaurant needed a strong theme, and this led to him marrying his two passions: cheffing and biking. Chef Jan told me that they are different, but surprisingly attract few bikers. Patrons supporting the restaurant come to find out more about about Caf\u00e9 racers. The bikes on display, the craft beer, and Chef Jan’s innovative burgers attract customers. Staff are encouraged to express their personality, and our waitress Mika fitted this bill perfectly. The Service approach is casual yet professional.  <\/p>\n

Mika gave us each an A3 menu, printed double-sided, filled with lists of burgers. Chef Jan has a great sense of humour, and played with words to add a touch of fun to the names of the dishes. Each burger has a motorcycling connection. It was hard to choose what to order with so many choices, but I was \"\"clear that I wanted a shrimp cocktail, one of very few non-burger items on the extensive menu.  It was topped with two slices of avocado, and was drenched in Marie Rose sauce, and contained a generous offering of shrimps. <\/p>\n

Bettina and Gudrun chose a burger each. Gudrun’ choice was called Br\u00fcger la Mignon, and was a new addition to the menu, with a beef patty (which had beef brisket included in the patty, Chef Jan informed, to add more flavour), roasted marrow bone, potato r\u00f6sti, and a Bordelaise reduction, served with moreish chips (R120). It was\"\" an impressive looking burger stack. <\/p>\n

 My sister chose an unusual salmon and potato burger, called Hanger Lane, served with wild rocket, fresh tomato, shrimp cocktail, and caper seed aioli, \"\"and loved the Tempura broccoli served with it (R120). <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For dessert Chef Jan insisted on introducing us to his mega Zepher special, described as a ‘garage-style Sundae with Jack Daniels, jelly’,<\/i> and packed to the brim with tiny and standard size marshmallows, and licorice all sorts, with a vanilla milkshake, <\/p>\n

\"\"which we shared amongst the three of us (R60).  He also introduced us to his newest dessert, Mad Mods, being chocolate brownies served with basil ice cream (R45). <\/p>\n

Chef Jan explained the names of some of his Burgers as follows: <\/p>\n

‘All the dish names have personal or some type of meaning in one way or another\u2026 Below I will name a few that on the current menu:
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

Triton<\/u>
\nSmoked Pork patty with creamed portabellini mushrooms, roquefort and honey marinated red onion
\nThis is named after a famous type of Cafe Racer. A Triumph Bonneville engine built into a Norton frame \u2013 hence the name TRITON
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

Hanger Lane<\/u>
\nSmoked Salmon patty with wild rocket, fresh tomato, shrimp cocktail and caper seed a\u00efoli
\nThis is named after a famous road in Cafe Racer-culture. Cafe Racer enthusiasts would race around a makeshift track on public roads around London and Hanger Lane was notorious for a place where accidents are likely to happen
\n<\/i><\/p>\n

Wheeler HD<\/u>
\nBeef Brisket patty, cream cheese, bacon, mac \u2018n cheese & sundried tomato oil
\nNamed after ALEX WHEELER\u2026 He and his team from Apocalypse built 60 motorcycles for the Harley and the Davidsons \u2013 series on Discovery Channel. Once aired internationally in October 2016, he donated the 1903 Indian that was one of the bikes used in the production whilst filming in Romania (the motorbike you took a picture <\/i>of)<\/p>\n

Mikachu<\/i><\/u><\/p>\n

Beef Brisket patty with grilled pineapple, bacon, sliced banana and condensed milk
\nNamed after waitress Mika. I don\u2019t truly get on with many people, but I have a lot of time for her and hold her in high admiration for the unique person she is.<\/i><\/p>\n

Fat F\u03a9#k Freckles<\/i><\/u><\/p>\n

Beef Brisket patty with jalape\u00f1o, back bacon, hummus, chilli a\u00efoli, fried egg and gouda
\nSo the one day an ex-girlfriend of mine came to the restaurant with her new boyfriend. The guy was a ginger, big and rather fat, with plenty of freckles. He ordered the Isle of Man burger and added extra bacon and egg to it \u2013 that pissed me off for obvious reasons. So when it came to a new menu, I designed one especially for him and named it rather appropriately, I think\u2026 Interestingly enough; they didn\u2019t date for very long, but he became a regular client and without knowing why the burger was named that; it became the dish he ordered every time he dined here’.<\/i><\/p>\n

Chef Jan and I had first met when he worked at Chabivin Champagne and MCC House in Blaauwklippen Road in Stellenbosch four years ago. His sauces impressed greatly.<\/p>\n

Sage Restaurant sauces sparkle at Chabivin Champagne and MCC House!<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n