Cape Town’s fine dining scene has a stellar array of options, but Curate, the latest offering from Ellerman House, is a 10-course celebration of South African cuisine. It’s not just South African ingredients that feature on the menu, but South African staples, reimagined with a fine dining twist by Chef Kieran Whyte.
Guests move through the restaurant’s stylised space, designed by artist Angus Taylor, with the vision of food, wine, and art combined into a curated experience. The evening begins with a welcome cocktail enjoyed beside a bronze sculpture of the 25-year-old pinotage vine, a defining South African wine varietal, before guests settle at private tables between two exquisite artworks.
The terroir wall is a mesmerising geometric collage of stone and silt, allowing you to spot your favourite wine estate and region over your partner’s shoulder. Their view is the giant carbon-fibre corkscrew known as the Wine Gallery — “cellar” would hardly be an apt description for the massive functional artwork that houses 1 500 bottles and weighs over two tonnes.
Chef Whyte’s menu showcases the unique character of various South African regions. “Our menu is a love letter to South Africa — a celebration of its terroir, heritage, and the beauty found in its diversity,” he says. The dishes taste familiar, but refined. We all know koeksisters, but here you’ll sample them as a savoury dish, served with salmon and Elgin apples. Bobotie is on offer, too, but again, not like you’ve ever had it Mrs Ball’s is reimagined as a delicate tuile with raisin crumb and turmeric cream. Crunchy amagwinya with a pillowy dough is served with smoked snoek and caviar.
The journey continues with Queenstown springbok, Kuruman Nguni beef, and Saldanha kingklip, before finishing with dessert — a soothing bowl of whitechocolate pap. Superb staff guide diners through each course, explaining the dish’s origins and inspirations.
The tasting menu is priced at R1 800 per person and excludes wine pairing, which is not to be missed. The diverse menu is carefully curated to complement the renowned Ellerman House wine collection. Joe Beziek, Curate’s sommelier, had the enviable task of selecting from the property’s 10 000-bottle-strong collection. “Our collection is vast, but the perfect pairing is intimate. I look for the bottle that breathes the same rhythm as the plate.” The wine pairing also costs R1 800, with the “connoisseur experience” available at R2 450, which offers even rarer vintages.
Curate is open between Wednesday and Saturday, and seating times are staggered at 18:00, 18:30 and 19:00. You’ll be there for a few hours — this isn’t a night to rush. The dress code is smart casual, and it’s best to Uber, as parking is limited to hotel guests — and the wine pairing is generous!
Perfect for an impressive date night with a difference, or the ideal spot to take out-of-town visitors who want to try classic South African food but don’t want to compromise while exploring Cape Town’s fine dining.
