Crispy, burst-in-the-mouth croquettes seem to be rolling around a few menus lately. At La Mouette in Cape Town, people are ordering them by the dozen. Before the Cape Quarter had its face-lift, there was a super restaurant called Dutch that served the most delicious croquettes, which you spread on rye toast with mustard. I had lunch at its new location the other day in Wynberg’s Chelsea, and the deep-fried meat-crumbed patties are just as delicious. And while having a pre-dinner glass of bubbles at the Roundhouse recently, we nibbled on these delicious morsels filled with surprises including mushroom risotto. It seems that croquettes are the next big thing.

Talking of bubbles and surprises, on Monday night three of South Africa’s award-winning restaurants were celebrated at the San Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants awards. Big congratulations to Margot Janse and her team at The Tasting Room at Le Quartier Français, who made it into the top 50 at number 36. This is their seventh consecutive year of being on the list, and they were also voted the best restaurant in the Middle East and Africa. After I congratulated Margot on Twitter, she replied saying she was beyond thrilled and gave recognition to her team. Rust en Vrede came in at number 61, another accolade for David Higgs and his team just before David heads off on a new adventure. And La Colombe took number 82, which is a huge achievement for the restaurant industry in South Africa.

I would try and book a table if I were you!

Abigail