The Winchester Mansions Hotel is the grand old dame of the Sea Point strip. Located in a prime spot with expansive views over the promenade and Table Bay, it has long been a space for locals and international visitors to catch the afternoon sun and sip on a cocktail.

Harveys, the hotel’s onsite bar and restaurant, offers a delicious menu and makes the transition from relaxing cocktail on the terrace, to lunch or dinner, a seamless one.

The restaurant setting is simple yet chic and the menu offers a variety of dishes created by chef Jochen Riedel and his team.

We recently visited to sample the new spring menu and experienced the hospitality of the Harveys team.

For starters I simply could not pass up the steamed mussels, and my partner enjoyed the trio of tuna served with a soy reduction. My mussel dish was a generous portion served in a deliciously creamy sauce. No mussel dish is complete without crusty bread to mop up all the sauce and that’s exactly what’s served with it.

For mains I enjoyed the Rib Eye with café de Paris butter, lyonnaise potatoes and roast veg. The steak was cooked beautifully, and well, lyonnaise potatoes, what’s not to love about those? Caramelised onions and garlic, layered with potatoes and butter and baked until golden… delicious! My partner was tossing up between seafood and steak, so opted for the best of both by choosing the “Of Land and Sea” menu option. A bacon-wrapped beef medallion, served with calamari and king prawns. A feast to feed landlubber or salty sea dog alike!

Despite having enjoyed plenty of tasty food, we had reserved a special pocket of space for dessert.

Having already scoured the dessert menu, we opted for the quattro of chocolate treats – because one serving of chocolate is just simply not enough. The dish included a mousse, brownie, white chocolate encased in phyllo pastry and a madeleine. It was enough chocolatey goodness for both of us and perfectly accompanied by a foamy cappuccino.

The evening’s meal was paired with beautiful wines from Bartinney Wines in Stellenbosch. The Cabernet Sauvignon was a real standout – simply sumblime, sip after sip.

Attentive service, an unbeatable view and tasty food is the winning combo at Harveys. With summer well on its way the hotel and restaurant are bound to be packed with visitors, so reserve your seats today.

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