Bruce Robertson

[docsconz]

Formerly of the acclaimed One.Waterfront at The Cape Grace Hotel in Cape Town, Bruce Robertson left the hotel and opened a new restaurant in Cape Town - The Showroom.

Inventive with a deft hand for fusion, Robertson has taken the plunge in opening his own place. He is an alumnus of the Gordon Ramsey School. I am curious to learn of any experience with this new restaurant. I very much enjoyed his work at One.Waterfront, the helm of which has now been taken over by Craig Paterson.

The Travel Section of the New York Times highlighted both today with an article on Cape malay cuisine.

“Cape Malay is a mature taste,” Mr. Robertson said in explaining the cuisine's newfound appeal. “It's genuine food, proper food, and it's South Africa's home cooking.”

[Knoopjelos]

I actually went to The Showroom twice while visiting Cape Town in July, making this the only restaurant we visited twice. Not that others aren't any good (I can especially recommend Aubergine), but what Bruce's place offers is a pleasant combination of good food, proper local wines and an exciting buzz. It's labeled as a fashion or jetset restaurant by some, and you might agree with that looking at the decor or the fact that it has an actual showroom with hugely expensive cars attached to it, but that surely does not diminish the quality of the food.

We tried, among others, a nice little foie gras and parma ham terrine with foie gras icecream on top, the signature sea food bowl with local crayfish, scallops and abalone, and intense porc belly, honey steamed with pineapple, which a gave a nice sweat and sour touch to the beautifully tender and rich meat.

Another thing worth mentioning is the wine list, comprised of the best local wines (like Bouchard Finlayson, Hamilton Russell and Jean Daneel) at ridiculously low prices for European standards.

Bruce Robertson likes a joke or special twist as well, and you can judge for yourself if it's proper behaviour to put an actual Lamborghini on the menu in addition to the dishes, but as a total experience I have to say I like The Showroom very much. Together with Aubergine, Bread & Wine and The Tasting Room it's among the best the Western Cape had to offer.