“I drink it when I’m happy and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I’m not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise I never touch it, unless I’m thirsty.” Madame Bollinger (1961)
Rhino Africa is based in Cape Town, a city where we are seriously spoilt for choice when it comes to fine food and wine. So how do you sort the wheat from the chaff? The tourist traps from the authentic? The shoddy service from the sublime? At Rhino Africa we’ve decided that there are simply far too many restaurants in Cape Town to eat at the same place twice. So for the next year, we’re going to eat out at as many different restaurants as possible and share our musings with you on the Rhino Africa blog with a weekly review we’ve decided to call the Horny Grazer. Please feel free to comment on our reviews and let us know about your experiences…
The Horny Grazer – Wakame and Wafu
Wakame is a vibey venue with some of the best sea views around – a setting sun and thunderous waves crashing into the shoreline make it an ideal lunchtime/sundowner venue. After a slightly more strenuous walk up Lion’s head than I’d anticipated, my knees were trembling by the time I’d finished climbing the stairs to Wafu, the upstairs bar/lounge area which also serves food. Trying to explain that this was not a side effect of alcohol withdrawal, we perched on a high table alongside the uber-chic bar under the curved wooden slats which create a fantastically chilled beach bar feel. The crowd is yachty-tottie and commensurately chic – Prada sunglasses aplenty, but on a hot day there’s really nothing better than a little fresh Norwegian salmon sashimi and a crisp glass of pinot griggio. There are sofas aplenty but this is a busy place where you might have to hawk for a prime spot.
The service is enthusiastic but at times inept as the waiters crash around the rather tight space making it feel slightly cramped at busy times. The sofas are fantastic, but the bar stools give you less support than a PEP bra. It’s not cheap, but I don’t mind paying a little more for a spectacular view. The sushi is fresh and tasty although the salmon was slightly on the fatty side. We tried a slightly experimental amuse-bouche of salmon and mozzarella roses – an unspectacular combination of plasticky mozzarella and well, salmon – not great, but hats off to them for trying something different. The rest of the menu offers the standard array of sashimi, nigri, hand-rolls and california rolls but also has some rather more interesting Asian dishes – a nice selection of steamed dim sum, duck pancakes with hoi-sin, sesame prawn toast and some delicious lime and coriander calamari.
Verdict: Unbeatable location for sea views, a plate of sushi and a cheeky sundowner. Give Wakame a skip and head straight to Wafu on the roof.
Cnr Beach and Surrey Road
Mouille Point
8005
Tel: 021 433 2377 / 021 434 5134
Visit the Rhino Africa website for information on where to stay, before you head out to eat!