Though Capetonians tend to take shelter during winter, it’s actually (secretly) a great time to be in the Mother City thanks to it famous winter specials. You’ll have to leave the house at some point, so make sure it’s to head to one of these restaurants.
Keep warm beside this restaurant’s fireplace while taking advantage of the winter specials now on offer. These include a two-course lunch (weekdays between 12pm and 4pm) with a glass of wine for R170, or three courses with a glass of wine for R195. At dinnertime (from 6pm), a two-course meal is R190 and three courses cost R225. But that’s not all – on Wednesdays, burgers and pizzas are half price from 6pm; and on Mondays and Fridays tables of four or more get a free bottle of wine if each diner orders a main.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
Have you experienced dining on the water yet? Now’s your chance to do so. The Alba Restaurant Boat is running a winter special that includes a two-hour cruise, meal and wine pairing. The bubbly brunch cruise is R295, the lavish lunch cruise is R395, the afternoon cocktail cruise is R295 and the decadent dinner cruise is R695.
Balducci’s is inviting you to take advantage of its lunch specials, which run from 11am to 6pm until the end of September. Choose from pizza or pasta for R79, sirloin steak for R109, or a 12-piece assorted sushi platter for R99.
You’ll be spoiled for choice at Bistro Sixteen82 this winter, where you can choose two courses for R230, three courses for R265 and four courses for R295. Think dishes like broccoli and roasted onion soup, pickled fish, and goat’s cheese panna cotta for starters; and mains of sustainable fish fritters, line fish, pulled beef and ricotta gnocchi, and a flavourful risotto of the day. If you’re going for dessert, there’s a choice between a dreamy yoghurt mousse, a delicious chocolate choux, or a rich caramelised apple bread-and-butter pudding. The special is available Mondays to Fridays until 30 September (excluding public holidays). You can also enjoy a wintery breakfast: The Vintner’s Breakfast includes a glass of Steenberg bubbly with your choice of signature classics on the breakfast menu, including eggs Benedict and tea or coffee. It’s followed by a cellar tour and wine tasting. The Vintner’s Breakfast costs R195 per person and is available Mondays to Saturdays from 9am and ends with the cellar tour at 11am. Lastly, the chef’s special of five tapas dishes for R325 is ideal as an early supper for two, available between 5pm and 8pm.
Pop in to try out the winter menu. The two-course lunch is R320, while three courses cost R425, both of which include wines paired with each dish. The winter menu is only available from Tuesdays to Fridays.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
Not only does Blowfish offer sea and mountain views while being indoors, but you’re also spoiled for choice when it comes to specials this winter. Start off the week with a scrumptious seafood platter every Monday for R99 from 12pm to 10pm. Pop in on Tuesdays for the R99 prawn-and-steak special served with a selection of sides between 12pm and 10pm. There’s also a half-price sushi special (on sushi belt items only) on Wednesdays and Sundays between 5pm and 8pm. You can also visit the restaurant any day of the week and enjoy the daily oyster-and-bubbly special featuring six fresh oysters and two chilled glasses of Pieter Cruythoff bubbly for R129 between 12pm and 10pm.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
Bootlegger Coffee Company has a half-price burger special off all burgers, from 4.30pm until closing time. (This is available at Cape Quarter, Century City, Green Point, Harrington, Kenilworth, The Marc, Salt River – between 3pm and 4pm – Sea Point, Stellenbosch and Tokai.)
This beachside eatery is enticing you to leave the house by slashing your lunch or dinner bill by 22% every Tuesday (which they’ve aptly renamed Take it Off Tuesdays). The menu offers fresh seafood, juicy steaks and even sushi. This special runs until August.
Chicha will keep you warm this winter with an extensive menu featuring two courses for R95 and a three-course meal for R135. Highlights from the menu includes lightly fried Patagonian squid with chimichurri sauce; a hot pot with porcini mushrooms, samphire and wasabi tobiko; and churros with chocolate dipping sauce for dessert. There’s also a tapas section that includes three tapas dishes for R155. Tapas options include peri-peri chicken livers with smoked bacon and crispy shallot on toast; or pot stickers with tandoori chicken, nutty lemon and creamy coriander.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
Col’Cacchio wants you to love Tuesdays (AKA Twosdays) as much as they do, so they’re running their two-for-one promotion again this year. Up until 27 August, you can order two of your favourite pizzas or pastas and get the cheapest one free. The special is only available for in-store sit-down meals.
? Col’Cacchio Foreshore available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
To mark its 25th anniversary, Den Anker is offering five winter specials for R125 each. Three of these options include sea bass on bulgar wheat, a mussel bowl with frites, and sirloin with café de Paris butter and frites. Each meal also comes with a selection of a draught: Duvel, La Chouffe or Liefmans Fruitesse.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
You won’t want to pass up the winter special at the Foodbarn. A two-course lunch or dinner is going for R295 (or R265 without wine), while a three-course lunch or dinner is R345 (or R305 without wine). This special is available all week, including weekends and public holidays.
If it’s Monday, you’ll want to head over to Gibsons – and take two of your besties along. This is when the restaurant’s delicious burgers are available for three for the price of two. Order three burgers and you’ll get the cheapest free. The special runs from 11am until closing time.
Tuck into the winter special at Janse & Co this season. Enjoy five courses from the tasting menu for R450 per person for lunch or dinner. This offering is available until the end of August. Booking is essential.
This charming eatery is running a winter lunch special that’s available from Tuesdays to Saturdays. A two-course meal will cost you R170 and three courses R195. There are various options available – highly recommended is the beer-battered kingklip goujons with rustic cut fries, mushy peas and homemade tartare sauce.
Enjoy a three-course meal (plus a glass of wine) for R230 per person. Highlights from the menu include tuna tartare, miso soup, vegetable tempura and ramen noodles. Finish the meal off with chocolate or orange ice cream. This special is available until 31 August. Bookings essential.
If you haven’t yet visited this award-winning restaurant, now’s the time to do so. A four-course winter special menu is on offer until 30 August for R495 per person (or R945 per person with wine pairing). This special is available from Mondays to Fridays (including public holidays) for lunch only.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
Ditch the winter blues with a five-course winter special menu for just R295 (or R545 with wine). Dishes on the menu include La Mouette croquettes with garlic aïoli, roasted butternut soup, hake, beef short rib and lemon posset.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
La Tête is offering a tapas-style experience where you can indulge in a selection of starters and desserts for R260 this winter. The special will start on the 28 May and will be available from Tuesdays to Saturdays for lunch and dinner.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
Make the most of winter by dining out at this Kloof Street eatery. During the chilly season, you can enjoy a two-course meal for R185 or a three-course meal for R210. These prices only apply before 6.30pm and after 9pm, Mondays to Fridays.
Mantra is running a number of winter specials. On Mondays, enjoy burgers, on Tuesdays seafood pasta, on Wednesdays pork ribs and on Thursdays curry. On these nights, the applicable meals are available at half the normal price.
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Indulge in an incredible five-course winter omakase menu, which includes favourites such as lobster with lemon dressing and beef tobanyaki. Enjoy this exclusive dining experience at just R600 per person. The offering is available for dinner only on Tuesdays to Sundays from 6pm. This offering is available until the end of September. Booking is essential.
For R230 you can enjoy a two-course meal, or three courses for R290. That includes dishes such as trinchado, miso salmon, calamari, vegetarian risotto, crème brûlée and banana split, to name a few. The special is available for lunch from Mondays to Sundays, or for dinner from Sundays to Thursdays.
Winter at Reuben’s is sorted. Guests can tuck into a set menu at R280 per person for two courses, or choose the three-course option for R350. Highlights include cauliflower-and-truffle velouté, lamb shank, parsley mash and malva pudding with rooibos ice cream. This offering is available every evening, except Wednesdays, until the end of September 2019. Booking is essential.
Take in the gorgeous views and enjoy the Salsify seasonal lunch special. Available for a limited time only from Tuesdays to Saturdays, the lunchtime menu costs R395 per person and includes a four-course meal and a glass of Methode Cap Classique or non-alcoholic cocktail.
The Skotnes Restaurant is offering a two-course meal for R195, or a three-course meal for R235 this winter. The menu includes potato gnocchi with orange, smoked butternut purée and boerenkaas; chicken-and-mushroom pot pie with a root vegetable salad; as well as a choice between a lemon maize upside down cake and a fig leaf crème brûlée for dessert.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
You’re spoiled for choice at Brasserie at The Stack, where you can choose two courses for R235 and three courses for R275. Highlights from the menu include fresh Saldanha Bay oysters with mignonette sauce; grilled springbok loin with braised shank, red cabbage purée, roasted garlic flan and red wine chocolate sauce; and butterscotch crème brûlée with a sage madeleine for dessert.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
Head over to Tjing Tjing Momiji and enjoy a taste of modern Japanese culture and cuisine. They’re offering a full Japanese kaiseki menu for R595 per person. The special is available Thursday to Saturday evenings until 31 August 2019. Bookings are essential.
? Available for online bookings on the Eat Out app.
Please note that while we take care to ensure the accuracy of our information, some specials may change without our knowledge.
Have we missed a great winter special? Let us know in the comments section below and we’ll investigate.