Michelle Matthews
food
La Colombe, Savoy Cabbage, The Restaurant, Bukhara … Dozens of the Cape’s best-known and loved restaurants fall under categories such as ”fine dining”, ”contemporary” and ”exotic” during the Cape Gourmet Festival. The most exciting category is ”new” a short list of six establishments ranging from a homey curry den in Wynberg (Fiamma’s) to a Belgian caf with dcor fit for Wallpaper in Green Point (Zero932), with the only commonality the fact that they’ve all opened in the past few months.
2 on Milner in Tamboerskloof is brand new we had to avoid door jambs that had just received their final coat of paint. Being part of the new Cape Milner hotel, I expected a four-star cafeteria, but 2 on Milner can easily stand on its own as a trendy bar-cum-restaurant.
I started with a trio of phyllo parcels. The spinach and ricotta; shrimp and mushroom and smoked salmon and mozzarella spring rolls (R22) were very tasty and complemented each other well. They were served with a mound of julienned salad vegetables. My partner, Andrew, had the mussels (R22). The shellfish were meaty, as the menu promised, and the mustard sauce good (mussels are too often slathered with a paste of Maizena and garlic).
My Canadian salmon (R45) was served with the customary sprinkling of couscous and stir-fried veggies. Andrew had the ostrich fillet (R55), a large piece of meat with a disappointing dollop of the advertised cranberry and pepper sauce to ease it down with. We both found our meat dry, but then it had been placed under the salamander while we chatted to the manager over a bottle of 1998 Plaisir de Merle Merlot (R104).
The slick dcor, fusion food and reasonable prices make 2 on Milner a great place for first dates or parties of friends.
In the same category, but another league altogether, is Tokara. Situated on the Thelema wine estate between Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, this six-month-old establishment is Etienne Bonthuis’s new baby.
We were seated at a table against the huge windows that, had it been daytime, would have offered us a breathtaking view. We ordered a Thelema Merlot 1997 (R85), an excellent wine with a peppery edge. The wine list is surprisingly restrained, including French imports, but setting the ceiling at R160.
I started with a souffl of salmon with a crayfish sauce (R45). The two souffls were light, yet intense in flavor. Andrew chose the quail with a saffron buttersauce (R48).
For my main course I ordered the deboned saddle of lamb with thyme and poached oysters (R72). Andrew had the grilled springbok with a guava coulis, roasted hazelnuts and a bearnaise sauce (R66). The lamb was perfectly sealed, keeping the flesh moist and pink. I plucked one of the succulent oysters from its shell, combined it with a sliver of lamb and as the flavours coupled in my mouth I looked up at Andrew and smiled.
Eating at Tokara is like starring in one of those arthouse movies where a sumptuous feast fills you with a passion for life.
2 on Milner, Tel: (021) 426 1101, and Tokara, Tel: (021) 808 5959, are two of 60 restaurants taking part in the Fleur de Cap Restaurant Week from May 12 to 26. All restaurants will offer a two-course lunch with a glass of wine for R49 a head. For more information visit www.capegourmet.co.za