Fermier Restaurant was named number 15 in South Africa at the 2017 Eat Out Mercedes-Benz Restaurant Awards. To find out why, watch the video and read the review below.

Food

To get the meal off to a hospitable start, the house-baked bread is served with both duck-liver parfait and whipped butter, as well as the tastiest little lamb fritter imaginable, topped with pickled onion rings. Although the menu changes regularly, expect to start with something as innovative (and superbly plated) as octopus with masala purée, orange purée, aioli, dehydrated tomatoes, crispy capers, tomato dressing and tomato flowers.

A dish at Fermier Restaurant. Photo supplied.

A deliciously tender and juicy scallop is just seared, its sweetness offset by black radish, turnip and broccoli. Kabeljou is presented with artichoke purée, the most delicious braised fennel, grapefruit, and a little salad that includes seaweed oil. The cured duck breast is served sliced with bone marrow, a poached quail egg, duck shavings and duck consommé.

The menu includes two different beef courses. The first, a piece of short rib, is presented with cauliflower purée, black garlic, hazelnuts, dehydrated cauliflower and truffle shavings, while the second is perfectly tender slices of sirloin artfully presented under a covering of wilted red cabbage, rhubarb and a deep rich jus complementing the pink sirloin.

This is followed by a cheese course that once again speaks of elegance and refinement. Dessert on this occasion consists of fried apple slices with apple and smoked-raisin custard, almond custard, quince purée, ginger crumble, burnt butter ice cream and an almond-sesame brandy snap. Despite its intricate presentation, it still manages to be comforting and delicious.

Drinks

Both the food menu and wine list are presented in the most beautiful hand-crafted leather folders. If the wine pairing offered with the set menu does not appeal, choose from several well-considered wines from the wine list, starting with some interesting bubblies.

Service

The dining room is managed by a lively and lovely group of servers. All waitrons appear to be totally in tune with their guests, ensuring that the wines are served at the correct time before each new course. Waiters are friendly, engaging and able to answer any questions confidently. Where this is not possible, they’re happy to enquire from the chef.

Another stunning dish at Fermier Restaurant. Photo supplied.

Ambience

The winner of the 2017 Eat Out Style Award, Fermier has a rustic, sustainable interior, with exposed rafters and raw wood, creating a unified and harmonious interior that is most certainly different from the bigger, brassier look favoured by most modern-day restaurants. The tables and chairs are beautiful yet simple, made in solid, heavy wood. In summer large, hinged doors open up to allow in nature, whilst in winter massive fireplaces are discreetly fed from behind. Flues run underneath the floor as a clever design feature to keep the space warm and cozy. The kitchen is completely open and visible to the entire restaurant, but it seems the kitchen staff has been trained to go about their work with the minimum of fuss and noise, so there’s no evidence of raised voices or tempers.

And…

This restaurant is situated on a shared property where all sorts of other enterprises operate, such as the ceramic studio from which the restaurant sources most of its beautifully tactile crockery, and an aquaponics farm supplying the restaurant with much of its leafy produce and fish. Outside the restaurant, some staff tend to produce in their spare time from the restaurant, as a means of generating additional income.

See all 30 of the nominees for the 2017 Eat Out Mercedes-Benz Restaurant Awards here and the Top 10 here.