The new fine dining Umami Restaurant in Stellenbosch is based on a ‘fifth taste’ called umami referring to a savoury flavour set apart from sweet, bitter, salty and sour.

You can taste it in food such as ripe tomatoes, parmesan cheese, cured ham, sushi, soya sauce, mushrooms, chardonnays and champagnes. Umami’s philosophy is to bring out this ‘full’ taste in their food and get to the centre of its “deliciousness” enhanced by super duper wine pairing from their cellar.

Umami features four different menus for the four seasons of the year as well as a six course set menu paired with wines from the area. Styles mixed are Asian, South African and French-European.

Go at lunch time for a lighter dish from the specials board or in the evening for the full deal. All dishes come with wine pairing suggestions and there is an emphasis on presentation.

Interesting sounding dishes include:

South African Bento box: Containing venison & Merlot turnover with zucchini chutney, curried ostrich ‘sosatie’ with sun-dried peach puree, a sweet pumpkin, goat’s cheese & thyme phyllo ‘samoosa’ and a Smoorsnoek tartlet with caviar mayonnaise.

Confit duck leg with vanilla & cranberry risotto, caramelised chilli-pineapple and wild mushroom demi glace.

Deep-fried grana padano risotto in a ground almond casing with enokitake mushrooms, green asparagus and wholegrain mustard hollandaise.

Umami Restaurant
Black Horse Centre, Dorp Street, Stellenbosch
Call: 021 887 5204
www.umamirestaurant.co.za