Review: Waterkloof Restaurant

WOW - what an amazing way to spend a Sunday afternoon! Unbelievably beautiful setting, amazing food, friendly and efficient service, great company and lots of laughter brought on by lots of fantastic wine!

Waterkloof wine estate and restaurant is tucked away in a hidden ravine on the slopes of Somerset West, with the most spectacular views over False Bay.

We arrived fairly early, as the only time available when making our booking was at 12h30, and were greeted in the parking lot by the most well spoken, well mannered and bubbly car guard I have ever seen. What a great first impression!

I’m not going to rant on about the amazing restaurant layout and decor (you can go to the website gallery and have a look - www.waterkloofwines.com), because the food and service deserve more of the glory - I could not fault a thing... well almost.

Its becoming a bit rehearsed now in most restaurants when the waiter is taught to up-sell by asking “would you like still or sparkling water for the table”, which is obviously then added to your bill. At Waterkloof, they offer FREE still or sparkling water along with the hot fresh bread rolls as you are seated - how refreshing! Before deciding which wine to order (to be honest, I was not familiar with Waterkloof wines at all), I asked for a taster of the Circle of LIfe, which was recommended to me by a friend. The waiter then proceeded to give us tasters of ALL the white wines on the menu (6 in total if I’m not mistaken) to help us decide on which we preferred before ordering the bottle. I know, it sounds a little unreal doesn’t it. We had been there for 10 minutes, had the equivalent to one and a half glasses of wine, 2 bread rolls, a glass of mineral water, and had yet to be charged for anything!

We decided on the chardonnay, which was unwooded and deliciously creamy, yet light. It was decanted for us at the table and put on a bowl of crushed ice.

The menu is only made up of 5 starters and 7 mains, so you would think it would be a quick order, but with everything sounding so appealing, it wasn’t that quick at all.

We each decided to choose something different and share in order to plow our way through as much of the menu as possible.

I went with the Oyster Mushrooms with rocket and crispy soft boiled egg (R70) for a starter, and the Quail with cream spinach, horse radish devilled quail egg and root vegetables (R140) for my main.

Vikki decided on the Confit Duck Leg in pistachio crust, sultana leather and consomme gel (R70) to start and the Glazed Pork Belly with poached golden delicious apple, fresh black figs and beetroot ((R135) for her entree. Everything was truly superb, except for the ‘consomme gel’ that accompanied Vikki’s duck starter, which was a little insipid. As difficult as it was to choose, my favourite would be the Glazed Pork Belly - to die for doll!

The amuse bouche before the meal was a pork pate with beetroot puree, which was amazing! In between each course, they served a small pana cotta with earl grey jelly and dried fruit, which was a little strange but a very welcomed surprise - not quite a palate cleanser, not quite a dessert, but tasty none the less.

For dessert, we came to the conclusion that the chef does not have a sweet tooth. Although beautifully presented, everything from the quince dessert that Vikki ordered to the chocolate fondant that I ordered, seemed to lack the sweetness you would expect from a dessert. Now I know that quinces are generally quite bitter, but served with a ginger ice cream which was also not very sweet (but very gingery), it all seemed a little to tart for our liking.

We finished off with a cheese plate which was served with little cubes of what tasted like quince jelly and fresh toasted bread. To be honest, I have had better cheese plates - no gorgonzola, no sweet marmalades or fruit to accompany the cheese selection - but thats just my personal preference.

All in all, I would highly recommend Waterkloof Restaurant, and look forward to visiting again, and again, and again.

Tel: 021 858 1292

Open Monday to Saturday, lunch and dinner.

Sunday, lunch only.