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text and photo: Wanda Augustyn
Following reports about previous Springbok hunts in London, I must confess to having harboured certain preconceived ideas about the menu and decor. Notions of pap and wors and green rugby jerseys, perhaps. But upon entering the tiny, packed restaurant, these conceptions were immediately proved wrong.
The Springbok pubs in London and this Springbok Café have absolutely nothing in common. There are no green and gold jerseys to be seen against the walls, even so, the décor is typically South African. Upon entering the restaurant, one notices bright blue tables, wooden floors and walls washed in orange paint. A mural of Table Mountain provokes visions of Cape Town, while paintings depicting fishermen and whitewashed cottages evoke the salty ocean taste of the West Coast. A photograph of our very own Madiba graces one of the walls, bathed in a soft glow by subtle blue light bulbs.
The cooking section is relatively open plan, lending a busy atmosphere to the venue. Above the counter, also painted blue, are shelves featuring wooden statuettes of zebra, a wire motorbike and beetle, plus cups, saucers and plates painted with Ndebele designs. On top is a wooden, open-mouthed hippo. Two jam-packed vases - one with yellow St Joseph's lilies and another with white Arum lilies - provide more homely decoration.
The waiters - two full-time and one part-time - look neat and slightly formal in their white shirts and black pants. All are South African and speak Afrikaans (although not equally well). Not only the waiters are South African, however. So too is everything in the restaurant. The food, the wine, the people and even the water, which will soon be imported from Franschhoek.
Pete himself believes his is the only exclusively South African (everything 100% South African) restaurant in Europe! His patrons, on the contrary, hail from all over. "Less than 20% of the folks who walk in here are South African. While most are British, quite a large percentage is American."
We received a stylish welcome, complete with sparkling wine, and were then escorted to those bright blue tables. And bowled over by the menu! The starters consist of seven choices, of which we enjoyed the delicious giant Natal prawns, purple potatoes and Lusikisiki avocado salad with chili oil. Other interesting choices were the Ficksburg asparagus with parmesan and avocado salad; a warm salad of grilled goat's milk cheese from Fairview, young potatoes and mango and lime compote; and char-grilled pumpkin and parmesan salad with a balsamic rooibos reduction.
The main course consists of eight equally difficult choices, including Kammiebos guineafowl, Hout Bay yellowfin tuna, blesbok loin medallions, ostrich rump, springbok fillet and zebra fillet, all served with interesting combinations of side dishes.
The dessert offers a selection of six, amongst which Dom Pedro with Amarula, Kahlua or fresh strawberries, malva pudding with fresh berries and thick cream, and a trio of Natal mango ice cream, unbaked brûlée and tarte tatin.
A popular option, according to Pete, is the chef's seven course meal (£29,50) where the diner is spoilt with seven (actually between nine and ten, according to Pete) of his speciality dishes.
Pete, himself a South African who received his schooling at Bishops and in Calitzdorp, says this is his personal interpretation of South African food. And what an interpretation! His wine list is equally impressive. Everything hails from his heimat - there are four sparkling wines (Nederburg Première Cuvée Brut NV, Laborie Cap Classique, Pongrácz Brut NV and Pierre Jourdan Cuvée Belle Rose), 12 white wines and 29 red wines. The wine list changes daily, however. "Everything depends on what I have and what I can get and so we change as we go along," says Pete. Among the 45 wines are some classy labels, inter alia, Thelema, Hamilton Russell, Kanu, Kanonkop, Zandvliet, Meerlust and Stellenzicht. The prices are by no means cheap. Definitely on the exclusive side, the most expensive red wine being the Stellenzicht Syrah 1998, at £45.
For Pete his restaurant is more than a job. It is his heartfelt passion, a colourful rendition of South African cuisine. Every six months he gives two bursaries to students from the Institute for Culinary Art (ICA) in Stellenbosch which enables them to complete the practical section of their course with him and he regularly flies to SA to train people in traditional cuisine.
The restaurant celebrated its fifth birthday at the end of June and there are great plans for future expansion. "The restaurant must be enlarged," he says, "and I may even combine it with a wine shop and deli." Which should not prove too difficult for someone who has arranged a braai for 30 000 South Africans along the Thames!
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Experience South Africa with knife and fork ? This philosophy is endorsed by restaurant owner and chef, Pete Gottgens, in his Springbok Café. And although the restaurant in Devonshire Road, Chiswick, is situated in a most unlikely place to rediscover South Africa, this is exactly what happened.
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