Where do you think of when you think of eating in
Franschhoek?
Reuben’s? French Connection, Le Quartier Francais? The old
favourites are always good, but do you ever try out the other guys, the ones off ‘the
strip’?
I love finding new gems and the best way to do that is to speak
to the locals. I had one such jeweled tidbit of information and took a turn
past Le Bon Vivant.
It’s a little off the main street and nestled in a beautiful
courtyard that was twinkling in the moonlight with quaint stone tables and
brollies. Note to self: go there on a balmy summers eve.
The food
Really good, chef Pierre Hendriks and his team are producing a
quality of food that is right up there with the big boys.
There is serious attention to detail and beautiful
presentation matched with fresh ingredients and interesting flavour
combinations.
We have an eye-popping gallery of the dishes we ate to ogle
over, so go and have a look immediately.
My top tastes: The
combination of hot and cold starters (R85) – wonderful to share and quite enough for 2. ‘Look at that!’ presentation and beautiful baby
explosions of flavour.
Crayfish and pork belly:
Crayfish tails and braised pork belly, crayfish springroll, lentils and
crackling vinaigrette (155) – an awesomely rich and interesting dish.
Springbok loin and shank: Grilled and earl grey smoked loin,
braised shank and red wine baby apple (130) – lovely duo for the meat eater.
The ultimate for chocoholics (R70 – too expensive for a
dessert I thought) – boozy hot chocolate, deep chocolate mousse cake and white chocolate ice cream. Nummy.
The wine
Our fabulous wine ed. Cathy Marston tells it like it is, “That’s a good, local list featuring
exclusively Franschhoek wines – well done to them for that. There are no
vintages which would have been nice and the wines by the glass section is a little
unclear, it might be better to list them in the sections with the full bottles.
Reasonable
mark-ups and a good range of prices. If there are any gaps at all, it’s at the
top end – there’s nothing there really for you to splash out on.”
Prices
The starters (R55-R95) and desserts (R50-R75) are quite expensive
but the mains are not (R80-R155). The ingredients are all pretty high end –
lots of foie gras, scallops, crayfish and prawns, so it’s actually very reasonable for what you get. You can also have a light
meal there for around R60, so it’s not only for a serious meal.
Great for
A romantic meal or a foodie indulgence with friends. If
you’re having the light meals menu, you can zip in for a quick Franschhoek bite
of deliciousness.