kurt_a's Profile
Namibia Eats
Swakopmund has The Tug, which is worth a visit - ask for a seat by the windows. Otherwise, pig out in the German bakeries / konditoreis and skip dinner!
In Windhoek, Joe's Beer House is fun and the food is good. Abyssinia, an Ethiopian restaurant, was excellent - better than I've had in Washington DC or Cape Town. I highly recommend a meal or at least drinks at the Hotel Heinitzburg (Relais & Chateaux) with a view that's stunning and very nice food. La Marmite has North and West African cuisine, and I enjoy Restaurant Africa for its unpretentious take on African fare.
HTH
Kurt
Cape Town and Franschhoek: Advice needed!!
1. Try Solms-Delta winery for something quite different in the mix of Franschhoek estates. (www.solms-delta.co.za)
2. Alas, South Africa like most of the Commonwealth suffers from the British love for tea...and you will battle to find good coffee beyond those you've listed. Thankfully, Origins is distributed in cafes and restaurants around town (e.g., Olympia Cafe in Kalk Bay), so you may do well depending on where you go. I don't know that there's a list of places that serve Origins. You also might want to try traditional Ethiopian coffee at Addis in Cape restaurant on Long Street if you're a coffee hound.
3. I don't rate much of anything in Camps Bay food-wise. There's a nice vibe in the evenings and at sunset, but it's more about the view and the beautiful people than the food...
4. Waterblommetjies are unique, and often part of the Cape Malay menu when they're in season. You should also try biltong, crayfish, rooibos tea, amarula, pap 'n' vleis, umnqusho (samp and beans), traditional sorghum beer (umqomboti). As a foodie, I'd highly recommend you not just eat Cape Malay cuisine, but learn to cook it. Check out Andulela's offering. Further afield in South Africa is Durban bunny chow (check out www.quarterbunny.co.za to learn about it, but in Cape Town you'll want to try The Quarter on Long Street under the New Space Theatre.)
Don't forget to try the brandy (Van Rhyn's 20-year is tops in the world) and the witblits/mampoer (moonshine)!
HTH
Cape Town Butcher?
Check out Raith Gourmet in the Gardens Centre (lower level), Black Forest Butchery in Plumstead or the Swiss butcher near the top of Kloof Street (just below the Loft Living shop, opposite Manna restaurant) - called Cape Delicacies or something like that, sorry can't recall the name offhand, though I drive/walk past every day.
Namibia recommendations?
Hi RPD
Go for drinks (or a meal) at Hotel Heinitzburg in Windhoek. Lovely views, especially at night, from the terrace.
A kid-friendly cultural dining experience is to be found at Joe's Beer House in Windhoek, and the food is good.
Do a 1/2 day cultural tour in Swakopmund through Hata Angu and you will have a lovely traditional African meal - groundnuts, stews, pap, and the kicker - mopane worms (caterpillars). If you do your half day in the morning, you'll get lunch, in the afternoon you'll get dinner.
My other Swakopmund food recommendation is The Tug. Book in advance and ask for a seat by the windows. Order the linefish (whatever's freshly caught). Also, ask about oysters, as Walvis Bay provides some excellent oysters to fine restaurants all over Africa, and they're just down the road. You'll find good traditional German bakeries in Swakopmund too. Take some kuchen on the road when you leave!
Amazingly, there is a lovely wine produced in Namibia, called Neuras, made on a farm not far from Sossusvlei. (The winemaker is from the excellent estate, Springfield, in the Breede River wine region of South Africa.) If you're in the area, you might also fit in a wine tasting...!
I also suggest popping in for a taste of traditional biltong, either along the road at a farmstall (you'll see the stands signposted), or in one of the smaller towns. You can ask around for good sources in Windhoek. Try a range of it - kudu, eland, beef, etc.
Drink Windhoek lager, the best beer in Africa.
I'm envious -- Namibia is one of my favourite places!
Cape Town-3 nights
Indian - Chandani on Roodebloem Road in Woodstock
Local food, unpretentious: Food Barn in Noordhoek and Olympia Cafe in Kalk Bay. Fish on the Rocks for fish and chips in Hout Bay. Toni's on Kloof for Portuguese
The distinctive regional cuisine is Cape Malay and should not be missed. Look at http://afrikatourism.blogspot.com/2007/01/cape-malay-cuisine.html for an overview of the cuisine. Suggestions are Zorina's on Loop Street (lunch), Noon Gun Tea Room in Bo Kaap (lunch, tea or dinner), Biesmiellah in Bo Kaap, which can be a bit overly local if you aren't used to working class muslim Cape Town.
Other personal favourites: Jardine on Bree, Masala Dosa on Long Street, Aubergine.
Haven't been but plan to: Bizerca Bistro, The Roundhouse
Overrated: Ginja, Showroom, any restaurant at the V&A Waterfront, any restaurant in Camps Bay, Riboville (review here: http://afrikatourism.blogspot.com/2007/03/review-riboville-restaurant.html)
Interesting to consider: Addis in Cape Ethiopian restaurant (review here: http://afrikatourism.blogspot.com/2008/01/addis-in-cape-ethiopian-restaurant-1.html)
There are also some good bakeries in town: http://afrikatourism.blogspot.com/2008/12/bakeries-of-cape-town.html
HTH
Kurt
Cape Town what to eat?
Hi erly - thanks for the detailed report. One note on curries in South Africa is that they are based on Malay curries, not Indian. Many have no chillies in them at all. They are milder, more aromatic and sweeter in general. They are, in fact, quite delicate when done properly and can easily be overwhelmed by a heavy wine or a too-potent side dish.
Also, Biesmiellah is authentic local food - like a good diner in New Jersey or proper pub fare in an English village. The cultural experience is half of the joy of eating there. Glad you had company and felt comfortable!
HTH
Kurt
Cape Town what to eat?
Hi Bev
Cape Malay cuisine is the distinctive local cuisine (http://afrikatourism.blogspot.com/2007/01/cape-malay-cuisine.html):
"With the rise of the middle class and the shift in wealth in South Africa, this has meant an elevation of the cultures of that middle class, and in Cape Town that means coloured culture(s). In addition to Cape Malay cuisine, we're seeing an interest in Cape Jazz, in the Cape Minstrel musical traditions, and in preserving the complex slave history of coloured ancestors. Like great port cities of the world, there is a wonderful, powerful, distinctive and heady mix of cultures and pleasures to be discovered! Think of New Orleans -- Cajun and Creole, Jazz, Mardi Gras, history, mystery and a dash of hedonism (port cities take their R&R seriously!)."
Authentic local restaurants and cafes include Zorina's (lunch only) and The Noon Gun, and Biesmiellah has many local supporters, though it's not as nice a venue. None have or allow alcohol. Higher end restaurants specialising in Cape Malay cuisine include the Cape Colony at the Mount Nelson Hotel and the Cape Malay restaurant at Cellars-Hohenort. Note that you can also take cooking lessons...(http://afrikatourism.blogspot.com/2008/02/cape-malay-cooking-lessons.html)
Other exceptional foodie places include Olympia Cafe in Kalk Bay (very casual), Jardine on Bree, Aubergine and a new star, the Round House above Camps Bay. Have fish and chips at Fish on the Rock in Hout Bay. Sip cocktails with the beautiful people at Cafe Caprice in Camps Bay. Enjoy a braai Xhosa style at Mzoli's (go with a guide). Sip a glass of local bubbly while the sun sets at the Table Mountain Cableway restaurant (on top of Table Mountain). Lots of eating to do!
The original Bukhara restaurant on Church Street has come back to form and is exceptional northern Indian, but Chandani on Roodebloem in Woodstock is my recommendation. A good lunch spot is Masala Dosa on Long Street.
Consider Addis in Cape on Long and Church for Ethiopian - but go early to avoid excessive delays in the kitchen. If you're keen for game, then Khaya Nyama is a good choice. I don't rate any of the other 'African' restaurants aimed at the tourist trade, although Marimba in the convention centre may be an exception if you're with a group and get their 'feast.'
I also don't rate the restaurants at the V&A Waterfront very highly, though many people enjoy them. Den Anker for a beer and moules frites is fun, however, and Willoughby's is a good choice for sushi.
There are some exceptional places in the Cape Winelands as well, several in Franschhoek (but some are overrated, IMHO). Depending on your movements, different restaurants will be appropriate, but De Leuwen Jagt restauraunt on the Seidelberg wine estate in Paarl is first-class Cape Malay by celeb chef Cass Abrahams, done in a relaxed wine estate style...lovely!
Enjoy your visit to the Mother City!
