In true temperamental Mother City-style, Capetonians in anticipation of a beautifully sunny start to spring were caught completely off-guard by the first weekend in September’s wintry bouts of rain.

In an attempt to dine away the gloomy weather that was forewarned, my weekend had an early start with a long lunch at the breathtakingly situated Salt, in Bantry Bay, on the Friday afternoon.

Overlooking a moody Atlantic Ocean, pounding the rocks in swirls of aquamarine and murky grey and fading into an even darker sky, a bottle of silky Spice Route Mouverde beautifully set the mood for the weekend of wondrous food and friendly company, to follow.

Ever-indecisive and equally adventurous, it was decided that all the meals at our table would be shared. The juicy rare sirloin, roast field mushrooms and home-made ketchup, followed by a steamy Moroccan lamb curry with chick peas, orange and green olives, and a lemony-garlic sauté of squid, chorizo, butter beans and tomato, almost made us wish that spring would stay away slightly longer.

Rainy Saturday brunch called for a bowl of creamy Malay butter chicken curry and minty Mojitos at the bustling Neighbourgoods Market in Salt River. Working up quite an appetite people-watching and making acquaintances, fresh supplies were also lined-up for late afternoon, pre-dinner snacking: a bottle of Diemersfontein Pinotage vintage 2007, homemade cabanossi, sweet-potato bread, a velvety mature cheddar and bunches of organic rocket.

Dinner at the latest friendly neighbourhood eatery in Observatory, Thai Thai, consisted of deep-fried Kingklip in a creamy coconut, lemongrass and chilli sauce with glasses of zesty house white wine to finish.

The spring feeling finally kicked in with a delightfully sunny Sunday afternoon lunch at the impressively refurbished Grande Provence in Franschhoek (pictured). An interesting twist on an old favourite was the Caesar salad with leg of lamb confit while the tender corn-fed fillet of beef with a red wine reduction and potato rösti was everything this traditional combination promised to be. The simplicity of the good quality food also beautifully matched the estates brand new sculpture garden which boasts pieces by the likes of Wilma Cruise, Angus Taylor, Guy du Toit and Rossouw van der Walt.

As winter’s dreary weather continues to overstay its welcome, why not plan a culinary weekend of your own and embrace belated spring in all its bluesy splendour.