THE BEST NEW RESTAURANTS IN CAPE TOWN YOU NEED TO TRY OUT
19 AUGUST 2019
Some days you have the gees to actually leave the house to eat and such an occasion calls for a restaurant that doesn’t disappoint/make you wish you’d stayed on the couch and ordered UberEats. Cape Town is a foodie’s dream, with new and exciting restaurants popping up weekly, but where to start? Here is our round-up of the best new restaurants in Cape Town:
ChiCha!
ChiCha, the wine and tapas restaurant on Regent Street in Sea Point, has already got a rep for it’s combo of a down-to-earth atmosphere with gourmet tapas and baller wine menu. The tapas, created by chef Julian Gabriel, change seasonally but RN you need to try their aubergine with toasted walnuts and the confit duck leg cassoulet with dhania lamb sausage. Their bar holds about 60 different kinds of wine and the staff are trained to know what wine pairs best with what, so you won’t be left to guess which wine will complement your chicken and prawn ravioli best.
The Athletic Club & Social
The decor of The Athletic Club & Social is what you imagine a dad’s larney sports bar to look like, except the sports talk ends at the rackets used as decorations, thank God. There are leather armchairs, velvet curtains, little private nooks with low tables and chairs, lush carpets, and a whole lot of wallpaper.
The crowd is mixed and unpretentious, and while it’s usually packed in the evenings you should be able to find somewhere to sip your cocktail on one of their three floors. Look out for their jazz and vinyl evenings, held in the basement. The Club does great sharing platters, and keeps their menu simple. Must-tries include their crispy sardines, roasted lamb shoulder with pita and their house-made ice cream, which is vegan!
YU Asian Tapas & Bar
YU, a contemporary Asian tapas restaurant, has just opened up on the Foreshore as part of the luxury hotel The Onyx. Owner Rory Jossel says their menu ‘lends itself to a sharing experience, it’s fine dining, but without the stiff three-course meal.’
This spot is all about the food but also has a nice ambiance, with a DJ booth for a late-night #mood and a range of Japanese craft beers for after-work drinks with a difference. Menu highlights include beef short rib bao, crispy rice with beef wagyu tartar and unusual sushi dishes like marinated seared salmon with burnt spicy mayo.
The Commissary
Created by the same team, The Commissary is like the cooler little sibling of The Shortmarket Club. You enter through a graffiti-ed hallway, eat off enamel crockery and almost all of the meals are under R100. The menu is small but unique and consists of tapas for sharing, like nam jim oysters, a bhaji bao and their Zoo Biscuit ice cream, made with liquid nitrogen, which just sounds cool as hell TBH.
Gigi Rooftop at Gorgeous George
The rooftop of Gorgeous George, Cape Town’s newest boutique hotel, has views of both the city and the mountain, and is covered in leafy green plants; it’s an Instagrammers dream. The mantra of the Gigi Rooftop is ‘come for breakfast, stay for dinner’, which is perfect, ‘cos we wanna hang out here but don’t have the cash for a whole, beautifully industrial-chic hotel room RN.
Guests and plebs alike are welcome to chill by Gigi’s rooftop pool and bar. It’s got an upmarket feel with a laid-back vibe, think Clarke’s meets Kloof Street House, with a pool to drink your cocktails in. The menu here is curated by chef Guy Bennett and features fresh takes on modern classics.