Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Sweetest spot for lunch
IT’S SOMEWHAT ironic that, despite its name, there is no chardonnay to be found inside this deli. Unless you put it there yourself; it has no liquor licence, but you are welcome to take your own.
Even though there is no wine available, it’s a lovely little place to have lunch. The front part is the deli itself, with shelves and tables full of goodies like cheeses, jams, bread, spreads, preserves and so on and meals-to-go in the fridge. There is a coffee bar at one end, a small open plan kitchen and a room off to the side for dining.
Out back is a veranda with more tables and down the steps from that a gravelled courtyard under the tall trees offers more seating.
The menu is small and on a chalkboard, which indicates it changes fairly often. From the top, there were three rolls: chicken mayo; beef fillet and mustard; and pesto, tomato, avo and feta.
There was a pie of the day and a quiche of the day, caprese salad, pork bangers and mash and two pasta dishes for vegetarians – penne with gorgonzola and cherry tomatoes and butternut tagliatelle with honey sauce.
I ordered the health salad with Cajun calamari and yoghurt dressing (R89), which came with a big hunk of bread.
Am I the only one who eats all the “good” stuff in a salad and leaves behind most of the greenery? It makes me idly wonder what the point of a salad really is.
My mom opted for the charcuterie board (also R89), which was a beautifully presented selection of cold meats, cheeses, pickles, pesto, root vegetable crisps (which were not that crisp), falafel balls which were not great (rather dry actually), and more of that wonderful bread, with butter.
To drink there is Truth coffee, assorted teas including red cappuccinos and lattes, super juices, normal fruit juices, smoothies, homemade ice teas and chocolate or berry milkshakes made with homemade ice cream.
The service was was willing and friendly; the waiter didn’t immediately know answers to any of our questions about the food, but he did go find them.
During our meal we were attended to by about three or four different people; all inquired as to our happiness and well-being.
After lunch we browsed in the deli and ended up taking home enormous slices of cheesecake (R38 each, and R48 for a Banting version). There were several different toppings to choose from, and Mom chose passion fruit.
“Really good,” she said. “Except for the crust… a bit heavy going and it couldn’t compete with the filling.”
Our bill, with a sparkling water, came to R314 without a tip.