I was at the Taste of Cape Town Saturday night as the wind howled in circles around the deserted stadium. The parking lots filled as the bloated rain clouds finally showered us with a cold mist that is so typical of Cape Town’s Autumnal weather. The dampness was no match for the hardy party-makers who enjoyed both good food and good wine.
The crowd was thinner than last year but that did not prevent us from dressing up and filling our sample wine glasses and environmentally friendly bowls with good food and good cheer.
The list of attending restaurants seemed a little meager this year though the fare being served was, on the most part, quite respectable. I was thrilled to see Solms Delta’s restaurant, Fyndraii represented.
The calamari and prawn paella with pickled spekboom was beautifully presented and local in flavor. I also discovered that their picnic baskets, that they offer at the vineyard, are now fully eco-friendly. I just might sign up for another 10km race so that I can enjoy the mouth-watering treats at the end of the run.
Another restaurant that did a great job at being tasty and eco-conscious was La Colombe. A friend of mine’s son, James, was working in the kitchen ensuring that pre-emptied egg shells were being filled with pieces of prawns and chestnuts
and covered in a coconut and lemongrass flavored velouté.
All they needed to complete the look was a bunch of chickens to eat the eggshells once the prawns were finished.
I love the concept of Taste of Cape Town and I hope that it was the weather rather than the Capetonian “been there done that attitude” that kept the crowds at bay. There is such amazing culinary talent in and around Cape Town that this event should be celebrated by one and all.
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