There’s a reason that the flavours of the Mediterranean countries are so popular: people just love olives, aubergine, tomatoes, garlic, chorizo, paprika and peppers… and these flavours are offered in abundance on a well constructed menu at Roca, discovers Fiona McDonald.

Food
The meze, antipasti and tapas encourage sharing and, for fans of more traditional fare, there is a variety of salads, calamari, bruschetta, ostrich carpaccio and phyllo prawns. Snails do not appear on many restaurant menus nowadays but here there’s a choice of three options: French, Italian or Spanish, and all are presented with ample freshly baked ciabatta for mopping up the delicious sauces. The latter version includes tomato, white wine, shallots, paprika, ham and bacon bits and roasted hazelnuts, which add a unique flavour and texture to the dish. For heartier appetites there’s beef, hormone-free and free-range chicken, ostrich and lamb, along with a variety of fish options. But it’s the accompaniments that elevate the dishes: black olive mash with pesto for a pancetta-wrapped line fish; mushroom and cumin risotto for the deboned half chicken; and tzatziki, baba ghanoush and hummus with shoestring fries with the Moroccan lamb burger. With renowned ex-Durban restaurateur Marco Nico at the helm, the pasta dishes are superb, perfectly al dente, with the sauces complementing and not dominating. The sugo di salsicce is a brilliant example of restraint with the Parmigiano-Reggiano, chilli, cream, tomato and herby sausage perfectly balanced.

Wine
The list is well selected and carefully thought out, but not overly extensive, making choice somewhat simpler and easier. There’s something for every taste. There’s a good spread of Franschhoek valley producers as well as price points, wine styles and grape varietals.

Service
The staff were perhaps a little too attentive at times (there are only so many times a water glass needs to be filled), but it is out of enthusiasm and a desire to please. They were very knowledgeable about the menu, cooking techniques and flavours of the various dishes and thus happy to resolve any dilemmas regarding choice.

Ambience
It’s impossible to hang onto stress levels or elevate your blood pressure while you’re watching a jackal buzzard wheel on a thermal in a blue sky. And that’s before you actually start taking in the beautiful panorama that is the Franschhoek wine valley at your feet. The choicest tables in summer are outside, exposed to the warm sunshine but protected by umbrellas. Inside, the vaulted brickwork can be warm, yet earthy and cool, too.

And…
The microbrewery was established years ago, long before it became a popular fad. The Roca staff are happy to offer you a tasting of their beer made on site.

By Fiona McDonald

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