Winter brings comfort to the Cape in the guise of replenishing rains, weekends spent around the fireplace, less wind and great winter restaurant specials such as The Shortmarket Club Prixe Fixe Winter Lunch Special. Winter restaurant specials have become part of the annual local culinary calendar and some are definitely really worth venturing out in the rain for.

A Step Back in Time

The Shortmarket Club has a sense of entering the prohibition era with its inner city location, discrete signage (look down for the bronze manhole at the entrance) and a long, dark alleyway which leads you to the restaurant. Charming waiters kitted out in white coats escort you to leather-clad booths. Other than a single source of natural light from a skylight in the roof there are no windows – this is true escapism.

Progressive Dining

There is an overwhelming impression that you are in a secret establishment where progressive ideas are celebrated. In its two years of celebrated existence, The Shortmarket Club has become one of the most popular fine dining restaurants in Cape Town – a sure sign that the team of Luke and Sandalene Dale-Roberts, chef Wesley Randles and manager, Simon Widdison have something special to offer.

It’s a special place and the restaurant gives you the space to relax, withdraw from the world outside and focus on the present – the incredible food, the wine and the people you are sharing your booth with.

The Shortmarket Club Prixe Fixe Winter Lunch Special

The 3-course Prix Fixe (fixed price) menu changes with the availability of ingredients. We started with a delicious bread offering, an amuse-bouche of springbok tartare, raw endive, frozen Parmesan cheese, pickled shimeji mushrooms with a walnut dressing, with the compliments of the chef.

For starters, expect dishes such as Sambal Matah Tuna Belly served with sambal oelek, hot coconut oil, chilli, basil and fresh lime. The coconut oil, heated by your waiter at the table, is an exotic experience of freshness and spice. This dish was inspired by chef Wesley Randles’ travels.

The main dish was also from the sea – listed on the menu as grilled Hake but our waiter informed us that we would be having grilled Red Roman that day. The variety of fish can change on a daily basis due to what is freshly available and, of course, all the fish served is from sustainable stock.

The dish was generous, light and filled with flavour from the lemon and tarragon velouté, smoked mussel aioli (incredible), fried chickpea panisse (crisp on the outside and smooth and slightly sweet on the inside), green bulgar wheat and roasted turnip – an expert mix of sweet, savoury and zesty acidity.

Ending on a Sweet Note

The Shortmarket Club winter menu ended on a sweet note with a Rhubarb Crumble with pine nut ice cream, mascarpone catalan, rusk and shortbread crumble. Again, a really generous helping of sweetness, with varying textures of deliciousness.

The Shortmarket Club Prix Fixe Menu Lunch menu comes in at an incredible R280, which is really good value for a 3-course menu at this level (R380 per person including a carafe of wine).

Perfect for a business lunch, an introductory fine-dining experience, an end of week Friday treat or any other excuse you can find. An incredibly generous offering from an extremely talented team – one of the best on offer this winter.

The Shortmarket Club Prixe Fixe winter lunch special is available at lunchtime only, Monday to Saturday, until the end of September 2018.

The Shortmarket Club is located at 88 Shortmarket Street and is open for lunch and dinner daily (closed Sundays).

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