Athol Place (Sandton)
This oasis boasts manicured gardens, exquisite décor and art, and incredible food. Next-level hot breakfasts include truffle-infused scrambled eggs with salmon on rye, and a French toast stack. The bistro lunch menu has burgers, line fish, tagliatelle and sandwiches. Dinner is the main event: the seasonal set menu begins with an amuse-bouche in the garden, then sensations like miso broth with seared salmon, five-spice pork belly, and seabass with coconut, lemongrass and lime. End on a magnificent triple-chocolate mousse.
Clico Restaurant (Rosebank)
Look forward to clean flavours and exquisite plating with organic, seasonal ingredients. Breakfasts include exciting flavours like dukkha-spiced oats. Lunches are light and casual, and dinner is where chef Marnus Scholly really flaunts his culinary prowess. There’s currently a new six-course winter menu.
Gentlemen’s Arthouse (Newtown)
The menu at this extravagant restaurant changes seasonally. Look forward to olives, truffled popcorn and poppadoms; an amuse-bouche of tuna ceviche, salmon tartare and cured beef cones; and lamb turned into a lollipop with greens, gravy and duck-fat fries. A burlesque dancer might accompany your dessert.
DW Eleven-13 (Dunkeld West)
Marthinus Ferreira’s degustation menu is a sumptuous culinary journey that begins with exquisite breads and butters and an enchanting amuse-bouche. Standouts include polenta with cauliflower espuma, sultanas, pine nuts, kale and brown butter, and confit duck cannelloni with a langoustine, tarragon velouté, onion crumb and pickled shimeji. Chef’s famous ice creams – honey and thyme with poppy-seed sponge or white chocolate and lemon curd – are sensational.
Level Four (Rosebank)
The menu is short, with creations by different chefs. Try the light and creamy butternut soup starter with tahini cracker, feta and hummus gnocchi; sea bass with coconut and cauliflower; or the beef fillet with smoked brisket, monkeygland sauce, pickled and fried alliums and turnips. Inspired desserts could include a rich 70%-cocoa chocolate lava cake or lemon brûlée with Inverroche gin and tonic sorbet.
Luke Dale-Roberts at the Saxon (Sandhurst)
Chef Candice Philip utilises exceptionally high-quality produce (as well as herbs, fruits and veg grown on site) in order to recreate Luke Dale-Roberts’s imaginative and detailed dishes. Highlights might include a sea-bass ceviche with charred broccoli, hazelnut salsa and miso aioli; the famed pork belly with blue cheese and compressed apples; and springbok loin with black-garlic salsa.
Marble (Rosebank)
At the heart of David Higgs’s new restaurant is a magnificent, custom-made grill, which lends smoke to every dish. You’ll find paprika, harissa and chipotle throughout, as well as smoked eggs, ash butter and burnt orange. For mains, choose between highlights such as the côte de bœuf feast, fried fish and shellfish for two, and pork neck with grilled pineapple. For something playful and light, end on ice-cream sandwiches.
View Restaurant at Four Seasons (Westcliff)
The main attraction here is a five-course tasting menu by chef Keth Frisley. The seasonal menu could include scallops with Jerusalem artichokes, kalamansi butter, king oyster mushrooms, crispy sage and biltong; superlative herb-crusted Karoo lamb with cannellini-bean mousseline; and dark-chocolate fondant with vanilla-poached pineapple, passion-fruit meringue and piña colada sorbet.
