Food24 eats at… 6 Spin Street

I like a good lunch as much as the next
greedy food editor. (Actually, given our relative sizes, perhaps more. Damn
you, Justine Drake.)

Add
to that the fact that my husband runs Lobby Books, which shares space with 6
Spin Street Restaurant in the palatial Herbert Baker lobby of Cape Town’s Idasa
Building, a mere 3 minute walk from Parliament and my own office… and well,
you can see my problem.

6 Spin Street Restaurant is run by Robert Mulders, originally of Rozenhof fame. Robert is
one of the few people in my life who makes the word élan leap to mind, although
maybe that’s just because I need classier friends.

Sandwiches

Robert makes lunching at 6 Spin Street
Restaurant incredibly easy. Feel like a sandwich? There’s a menu for that. I am
particularly fond of the rare beef fillet, red lettuce and wholegrain mustard,
although the chicken mayo and watercress is also delicious, as is the
Emmenthaler, pesto and rocket. (See? I told you I eat there a lot.)

A sandwich, at last check, will set you back
R45. If you’re up for something more substantial, Robert also has his ‘Quick
Spin’ lunch menu, where R150 will get you a starter, substantial main, glass of
wine and a cup of coffee or tea for afters.

Quick spin lunch menu

This menu changes from day to day, with two
choices per course, but I can vouch for the feta salad – six types of leafy,
Soetmuis biodynamic cheese and the best vinaigrette I have ever tasted (soya
and orange!) – as well as the chermoula roasted chicken breasts and fennel,
olive and orange-dressed kingklip. I’ve also had a fresh salmon trout mousse,
which I found a touch bland, possibly because I was pining for that nummy
vinaigrette.

I had a spritzer of Iona Sauvignon Blanc
and no coffee, and my bill (R120) thoughtfully reflected this.

A la carte

Should neither a sandwich or a set menu
appeal to you… you can also order a la carte. (I am currently saving up for
the crispy roast duck with van der Hum and ginger glaze (R175) because, come
on…. how fabulous does that sound?

And that’s not all. Want a little brainfood
too? If Idasa’s Democracy Centre is
running a lunchtime talk, 6 Spin Street Restaurant makes a nifty paper
bagged lunch for you to nibble on while you listen – a sandwich (of the
varieties described above, plus juice/water, a fruit and a cupcakey thing – all
for R45.)

I know I am biased, but I like 6 Spin
Street Restaurant. And for this review, Robert better give me that vinaigrette
recipe.

6 Spin Street was reviewed by Sam Wilson, editor-in-chief of Food24, Women24 and Parent24. Follow her on twitter.