Best steak restaurants in SA

Best steak restaurants in SA

Despite awareness of healthier diets and lifestyle, South Africans still enjoy a good hunk of flame-grilled meat. Kim Maxwell, Tracy Gielink and Andrea Burgener found out whether South African steaks make the cut.

 

We all have favourite neighbourhood eateries that serve enjoyable steaks; the sort that deliver a comforting meal where diners don't have to think too hard. Yet sometimes we want a little carnivorous dinner drama to send the tastebuds sizzling.

Our reviewing team tracked down restaurants with good reputations and grilled them about their beefy offerings. The criterion for inclusion was a solid reputation on the plate. While some steakhouses joined the list, our search went wider: a flavourful beef steak in a wine-friendly environment was an essential requirement. Maturation processes, cuts offered and signature steaks were relevant. We looked at bastings and sauces and the type of starch options served on the side. Then, using a shortlist, our independent visits measured how each establishment lived up to its hype.

Ageing techniques that affect steak flavour were considered. Dry ageing at controlled temperatures shrinks meat protein through loss of moisture and the breakdown of connective tissue, increasing flavour and tenderness for cuts on the bone. It's a pricier process than the more standard wet-ageing, relevant to a restaurant industry that charges by weight.

Asking around, it was obvious that taste was integrally linked to how the beef was reared. Former chef Andrea Burgener is pretty clued up on grassfed versus grainfed arguments. She explains that most beef sold locally is grainfed, which means the cows are grassfed for a short time (differing from producer to producer) then moved into feedlots.

The cow's alkaline digestive system is naturally suited to grass whereas the unnatural corn diet negatively affects the cow's digestive system, making frequent use of antibiotics unavoidable. Also, synthetic growth hormone is given to most (though not all) grainfed cows to reach slaughter weight faster. While antibiotics are occasionally needed by grassfed cows, this beef has been shown to be nutritionally superior to grainfed, especially in terms of the meat's fatty acid profile.

Free range and grassfed usually mean the same thing. Grey areas include grassfed beef finished on grain which, while not ideal, is better than feedlot all the way. There seems to be a strong case for free-range, grassfed beef having an upper hand in the quality and flavour stakes. Keep in mind that stringent certification requirements prevent many quality meat suppliers from being certified as organic.

Cape Town restaurateur Giorgio Nava has established his own herds to ensure a quality supply of free-range, grassfed beef, and his Italian Romagnola bulls crossed with Nguni and Afrikaner cows respectively feed on Karoo grasses. Certainly a beef export business was the lure, but it must be pleasing to have a hand in your freerange, grassfed beef, from long before butchering stage to the table.

Three or four Gauteng restaurants laud Greenfields Free Range beef in Mooi River for supplying steaks of superior flavour. Problematic distribution - and the added cost - means it's hard for restaurateurs based elsewhere to secure grassfed beef even if they want to. Greenfields herds (a Bovelder-Angus cross) are raised on grass in summer; rye grass pastures and hay in winter. After processing in a small abattoir, the beef is butchered on the farm.

Greenfields owners Adam and Cathy Kethro report that grassfed beef is such a niche market that despite being a small producer they're considered one of the bigger players. Their beef is not grain-finished, doesn't require a long hang time and is completely hormonefree (cows on antibiotics are taken out of the programme temporarily). To quote Cathy: "We found a little piece of the steak market and it's working incredibly well for us."

KNOW YOUR STEAK

We figured a butchery refresher course would be handy. Yet it's awfully hard to reach consensus, with South African restaurants' steak cuts varying according to their meat suppliers. Restaurants with hands-on involvement in butchery and maturation seem to serve truer cuts.

Jonathan Steyn says Belthazar's Chicago cut is a ribeye on the rib bone, from the 5th to the 7th vertebra in the forequarter. It's near the prime rib, which is even further forward in the forequarter. Belthazar's Chicago is similar to what Carne SA calls rib-eye on a forequarter rib bone. But even what appears as a ribeye (deboned) can vary, as abattoirs typically cut through the rib-eye when separating the forequarter and sought-after hindquarter, offering something closer to sirloin. True rib-eye incorporates the eye muscle with good marbling.

Natasha Wray at 96 Winery Road says the prime rib requires more maturation because it's from the tougher forequarter, so increased marbling will encourage softening during cooking. They use AB-grade meat because additional fat aids the softening process. A prime rib should be near the front of the rib area, the T-bone further back in the tender hindquarter, with flavourful sirloin and tender fillet forming either side (Havana Grill in Durban removes the sirloin and serves a special of the fillet attached to the T-bone). The rump cut (from the cow's rump) has a thin edge of fat.

CAPE TOWN & VICINITY
96 WINERY ROAD
Somerset West. Tel 021 842 2020. Lunch and dinner
daily except Sun dinner. Steaks R85 - R140.

Expect a contemporary country menu that more than stacks up on the steak front too. Cuts (rump, sirloin, T-bone) are shown and explained to diners. Specialities include the Hollandse fillet with pepper sauce flamed at the table, and the prime rib. Impressively, it's all grassfed beef from a family-run Riebeek Valley farm butchery, dry- and wet-aged (the latter in the restaurant), and cut to order. The prime rib can range from 350 to 800g, and the smallest on the day (450g) was nicely marbled and delivered tasty charring from its basting sauce when eaten plain. Béarnaise made a decent sauce partner; soggy tempura side vegetables were the only regret. With informed, hospitable service and good prices, this venue is a deserved steak contender.
Wines: comprehensive South African plus international list from cellar on site. Corkage R30.

BELTHAZAR RESTAURANT
& WINE BAR
V&A Waterfront. Tel 021 421 3753. Lunch and dinner
daily. Steaks R138 - R195.

Winning awards for steaks since opening in 2003, educated wait-staff offer a slick steak experience at Belthazar. Using grainfed A-grade Karan beef, most steaks are wet-aged (including the sirloin, a decent mouthful). The T-bone, Chicago and prime rib - all 500g - are the serious contenders: wet- and dry-aged for six weeks, using Waterfront cold storage facilities. Six sauces are offered, but bringing complimentary sausage in spicy sauce with homemade bread for nibbling on, a waitress was confident that the flagship Chicago steak (ribeye on the bone) was sufficiently tasty with only the house basting. The flavour didn't disappoint but paying R195 for more sinew and fat than seemed reasonable for this cut was hugely disappointing compared to previous impressive versions eaten here.
Wines: 600 wines, including 250 by the glass, plenty of steak-friendly options. No BYO.

CARNE SA
Cape Town CBD. Tel 021 424 3460. Dinner Mon to
Sat. Steaks R95 - R130.

Amazing variety punctuates a menu of meaty Italian specialities inside a modern industrial venue. In steaks, quality is unparalleled with grassfed export quality beef (crossed Italian-South African breeds) from Giorgio Nava's two Karoo farms. Unusually, the beef is dry-aged as a whole carcass (20 to 30 days) and individual cuts matured longer. La Fiorentina for two grabs the limelight; the hefty 1.2kg T-bone meat sliced, with one of the sharing duo receiving the bone. Unusual Lombatello hangar steak (250g), a darker textured cut near the diaphragm, was interesting to try, but its intense flavour won't be to everyone's taste.

I will return for the 300g rib-eye, offering outstanding flavour and marbling. Robust ribeye on the forequarter rib bone (800 - 900g) also looks tasty, sliced for two. True, the sauce selection is limited and "thicker" thin chips aren't available (my shoestring fries crisped into ultra-thin bits). But in steaks displayed beforehand, pricier maturation delivered exceptional flavour when grilled with olive oil and rosemary.
Wines: walk-in cellar offering a meat- and pocketfriendly list. Corkage R40.

HEADQUARTERS
Cape Town CBD. Tel 021 424 6373. Lunch and dinner
Mon to Sat. Steak R140.

The signage says it all: salad, sirloin, chips. It's brave to open a restaurant - classy as it looks - and serve only one steak. But the quality-orientated Caveau boys know a little about what customers like, drawing a loyal clientele at their other venues. At long banquette tables, diners are served salad (cos and iceberg, toasted pinenuts, vinaigrette and parmesan) and a 250g sirloin with Café de Paris butter. It's a steak-friendly match (17 ingredients in this herby butter) although I requested my sauce separately to properly taste the certified organic, grassfed Namibian steak, wet-aged for 35 days. Grid marks had been seared with olive oil, the plain steak tasty and cooked to order. Rested meat juices seeped alongside perky Belgian-style chips, a tepid serving temperature my only complaint.
Wines: interesting list of 58 wines, all by the glass. No BYO.

KWAZULU-NATAL
JOOP'S PLACE
Morningside. Tel 031 312 9135. Mon to Sat dinner,
Fri lunch. Steaks R58 - R130.

Established in 1973, this is where the fanatical will reach steak nirvana. Owner Joop Mol was a butcher so his standards are exacting, and he personally cooks the steaks to order. The KZN beef is grainfed, free-range and hormone-free. Mol wet-ages all cuts for three to four weeks and stores them at zero degrees in a cold room that's opened once daily. The interior is old-fashioned and the service remarkably good. On a waiter's glowing recommendation, the hallmark pan-fried 300g fillet in butter was impossible to resist. It's flambéed in brandy to form a crispy crust that is neither dry nor burnt but adds a surprising dimension of flavour to this cut - a melt-in-the-mouth sensation that takes fillet to new heights. Chargrilled cuts are treated with the same love. The rump is particularly good.
Wines: quaffers balanced with reasonably priced quality wines. No BYO.

HAVANA GRILL
Suncoast Casino, Durban. Tel 031 337 1305. Lunch
and dinner daily. Steaks R95 - R135.

Turning over a ton of beef weekly makes offering freerange, hormone-free meat in this restaurant challenging (occasionally grassfed beef is available). But it also translates into quality control as three abattoirs hand over to Havana immediately after slaughter. Most cuts are matured for 28 days - visible in large fridges - and 600g T-bones are dry-aged. The menu provides guidelines on weight, ageing and cooking times. Look for specials including trademark dry-aged prime rib (R125), the ribeye or the unusual "fillet on the bone". Sauces made with stocks and reductions are more inspirational than most. I tried a 350g rump with a small edging of fat. Grilled in a basting sauce, it was deeply flavourful, succulent and cooked to perfection. Wines: quality staples bulked up by an enviable cellar plus a daily list of bottles available. Corkage R25.

BUTCHER BOYS
Morningside. Tel 031 312 8248. Lunch weekdays and
Sun, dinner daily. Steaks R72 - R115.

Here inquisitive diners can get to grips with their steak. The occasional screech of a butcher's blade may be offputting but the upside is that customers can specify size, thickness and leanness. Ageing cuts flagged with dates are displayed in fridges, and a book detailing cuts and preparation is available for scrutiny. An easier option is quizzing knowledgeable waiters, who'll tell you that rump and sirloin are wet-aged for 24 days while Tbone and prime rib are dry-aged for 28 days maximum. They'll also recommend what is eating well on the day. Steaks are chargrilled and starch orders even include pap. Overzealous cooking resulted in a chewy exterior for my 350g lean rump, although it didn't detract from the depth of flavour.
Wines: SA selection focusing on reds, backed by good glass options, auction wines, magnums and coveted bottles. Corkage R30.

JOZI AND PRETORIA
THE GRILLHOUSE
Rosebank. Tel 011 880 3945/ 8 0. Lunch Sun to Fri,
dinner Mon to Sat. Steaks R73.95 - R157.

The restaurant which moved the steakhouse concept from family outing to sophisticated dining for Joburgers. Both décor and patrons tend to the masculine, and this is big-time corporate territory over lunch. Remarkably professional and charming servers will bring raw meat out on request (additional meat info on the menu wouldn't go amiss, so that waiters wouldn't need to repeat the same lines to every diner who enquires). Beef is all aged on the premises. On a blissfully short menu, almost all cuts are available in dainty and larger portions. The three-fingers-thick 300g rump I tucked into was awesomely flavourful for a grainfed and wetaged product, no doubt thanks to the hands-on, closely monitored ageing. And theirs are the best onion rings in the business, no question. Sauces, although from the starch-thickened school, are not stodgy, and the elegant green peppercorn is a winner with any steak.
Wines: extensive collection, from entry level to auction specials and rare vintages. Many by the glass. Corkage R50.

THE BUTCHER SHOP & GRILL
Sandton. Tel 011 784 8676/7. Lunch and dinner daily.
Steaks R105 - R145.

Probably Jozi's most famous steakhouse, with white wall tiles, a sawdust-strewn floor and even an amazing giant image of knife-wielding abattoir workers driving the butchery message home. This is not just theme quirkiness; there is in fact an extensive and interesting butchery within the restaurant, offering not just beef but also game, goat etc. Sadly, the dry-aged beef that gave the place its edge is long gone (the resulting shrinkage wasn't cost effective). Still, my 300g ribeye, a cut they've always promoted, was pretty good; its distinctive grain made tender by the long ageing and supported by the best chips in the city. There's one size of each cut on the menu, all grainfed, all aged for around 21 days, and bespoke sizes to order from super-knowledgeable servers on request. The inconsistencies accompanying grassfed beef are understandably tricky for this vast business, but a grassfed option as an "if available" entry on the menu would make a worthy addition.
Wines: vast collection, with extensive house range by the glass. No BYO.

THE LOCAL GRILL
Hurlingham. Tel 011 886 8866. Lunch Mon to Fri,
dinner Mon to Sat. Steaks R70 - R220.

A light, slick, modern grillhouse, free of any woody feel and aimed at an educated clientele. For years they've offered both grainfed Chalmar beef and arguably healthier Greenfields free-range beef from the Midlands. Dry and wet ageing (depending on the cut) is done on the premises, and super-clued-up servers will provide details of length and ageing processes. Seasons dictate the changing flavour of grassfed steaks. All my experiences here have been intensely delicious, whatever the cut, from a man-sized, flame-licked, grainfed T-bone, to a caramelised grassfed rump with deep flavour and good marbling. Sauces also rate: the béarnaise is made to order (why don't more steakhouses offer this classic?) and you won't find any stodgy-porridgy stuff. Beautifully elegant shoestring chips are also must-haves.
Wines: increasingly interesting list with a separate bythe- glass menu. Corkage R45.

A cut below
CAPE TOWN & VICINITY
• Bruce Henderson's steaks enjoy a well deserved
reputation at B's Steakhouse, Hermanus
(Tel 028 316 3625, steaks R105 - R145). Wet-aged
and grainfed, being cut to order makes the
difference. Chips, tasty basting and sauces are all
homemade. Unfortunately, rare visits when the
owner isn't at the grill deliver under-par eating
(no T-bone in stock, average fillet and sirloin).
Great rump might save the day though.
• The selling point at Eighteenhundred in
Green Point (Tel 021 430 0506, steaks R105 -
R135) is a grill heated to 1800°F that cooks from
above. Grainfed and grassfed beef wet-aged for
30 days minimum, butter-sealed before grilling.
Although not a steakhouse, there is no excusing
staff who don't know their meats. A sirloin was
decent (good béarnaise too), but I'd prefer more
training and less gimmicks such as assorted salts
and sauces.

JOZI AND PRETORIA
• The Florida branch of Founders Grill
(Tel 011 672 3975, steaks R76 - R110) offers
woody retro steakhouse dining, but management
and service dip when owners are absent. Grainfed,
wet-aged meat sometimes seems under-aged but
the indescribably delicious baste almost saves the
day. From an array of old-fashioned steakhouse
side orders, the creamed spinach is tops.
• Wombles in Parktown North (Tel 011 880 2470,
steaks R100 - R150) is an elegant retro restaurant
incorporating "steakhouse options". All beef is wetaged
on the premises, with extra points for grassfed
Midlands beef and smooth, informed service.
The problem is uneven quality. When it's good
they're phenomenal (perhaps the best), but things
can go badly wrong during an unlucky shift - eg
shabby side dishes and meat not properly rested.
• The overall experience at Turn 'n Tender in
Parktown North (Tel 011 788 7933, steaks R69 -
R190) is good but there are crucial problems: most
beef cuts are served on such burning hot iron
platters that a rare steak soon turns medium-rare.
It also means the meat can't rest before you cut it,
a seminal error. Super-friendly servers and
managers, though, plus great accompaniments.
Prices are per person where steaks are shared.