Review: Rust en Vrede

Thursday, December 7th, 2023

Food
Situated on one of the oldest wine estates in the Cape, Rust en Vrede is a homage to fine food and wine. The Cape Dutch buildings on the estate are national monuments, and Brazilian-Italian chef Fabio Daniel presents elegant food with immense care and precision using impressive technique, without it ever feeling contrived or overworked. A six-course menu is on offer, as well as a chef’s experience menu, which is created for diners for the occasion, so the menu is a surprise. You could expect the likes of a bread course with pillowy bread and rich butter with an unusual milk curd, and a chicken mousse canapé with a gossamer-thin potato starch crisp. Next up, you may be treated to a sophisticated pea-and-spinach mousse with mint, fermented cucumber gel and yoghurt granules – the flavour of the mousse is perfectly complemented by the cucumber gel, with the yoghurt granules offering an interesting contrast. Cured yellowfin tuna, sesame purée, cashew nuts, tataki gel, shimeiji mushrooms and pickled baby turnips is an ode to the popularity of Japanese cuisine in the chef’s home country. The dish is packed with umami flavours, with the creamy purée providing good balance. Flamed salmon crudo brings layers of salmon roe, pickled cucumber, seeds and nuts, puff pastry and a yoghurt espuma, all dusted with nori; while pan-seared salt- and orange-cured duck breast with rooibos gel and honey glaze is perfectly cooked and explosively flavourful. Venison (in this case blesbok) is served with farofa (toasted cassava flour, another Brazilian touch), which has activated charcoal added to it here, and black garlic purée, coffee-and-cauliflower purée, Romanesco salad with crispy kale and sweetbreads. The lean meat, rich sweetbreads and freshness of the broccoli are incredibly well balanced. For dessert, a riff on Brazilian cocktail caipirinha – a crumb topped with coconut sorbet, lime gel and milk gel, rolled in coconut and cloves with a clove tuile – and “doce de queijo”, a cheese course that’s a tribute to the chef’s grandmother, comprising a sesame sablé, a Parmesan dumpling, lime-and-coffee butterscotch, a meringue shard and frozen Parmesan snow. Whether you choose the six-course menu or the chef’s experience, it will be a memorable occasion. This is sophisticated dining with intensity and personality, and exceptional value given the quality of the food and wine.

Drinks
The wine list features wines from the estate, as well as others from nearby wine farms and those further afield. Both menus are available with an optional wine pairing for each course. The sommeliers are knowledgeable and able to suggest wines to complement the food.

Service
Service is professional and friendly, with waiting staff well versed in the menu, confidently explaining the complex elements.

Ambience
The restaurant is warm and comfortable, with a buzzing atmosphere. The chef interacts with guests, making sure they’re enjoying themselves. The historical setting is beautiful, and there are views of the gardens from the arched windows.