Umami (Stellenbosch)
By day, Nikonwielding tourists stroll the oak tree-lined streets and rub shoulders with trendy students at coff ee bars and chi-chi cafés, while at night the town is abuzz with the sights and sounds of diners savouring the many eating opportunities.
Though there seems to be a plethora of franchise eateries or sibling restaurants to already-successful Cape Town foodie stops, there are a number of stand-alone restaurants worth making the trip to the Eikestad for.
When I heard the name of this particular spot, I pricked up my ears. Umami is named for the elusive term, the “fifth taste”, that state of delicousness or savouriness in food that makes your tongue want to wrap around the taste forever. First earmarked by one Professor Ikeda of the Tokyo University at the turn of the last century, it was simulated in the form of Monosodium Glutamate (MSG), also known as “Chinese Salt”, which is often what gives Chinese and Thai food its moreish flavour. Said to also be present in foods such as cheese and tomato, feed your guests with platefuls of Umami-laden food, and you’re halfway to a winning recipe, one would think.
Umami is situated in a tree-shaded courtyard just off Dorp Street. For some reason (perhaps the Asian name) my brain had been wired to expect an Asian-influenced space and menu, but this was not so. A muted colour palette, contemporary lines and a stone-clad wall to add texture were pleasing on the eye though by no means overwhelmingly exciting. No doubt in the evening, with the flickering candlelight reflected in the glass expanses, the effect would be rather striking.
I met my sister for lunch on a rather miserable, supposedly summer’s afternoon. One of three occupied tables in the downstairs section of the restaurant, we were tended to by a perfectly friendly (though something of a hoverer) waitress who talked us through the menu.
For starters, my sister opted for the roasted balsamic beetroot salad with goat’s cheese and toasted pumpkin seeds while I chose the teriyaki duck breast with sautéed shiitake mushrooms, macadamia nuts and grilled zucchini. Beautifully presented in elegant tableware, the salads were sizeable and my slices of duck absolutely umamiish. My sister pronounced her salad OK – but seemed disappointed at the ratio of lettuce (loads) to the beetroot (fair) and goat’s cheese (not readily visible). At a starting rate of R45 for the salads, they seemed rather too straight-up-and-down for the price – no more and no less than what the menu offered.
For main course, we were stumped. Having had a starter, I was looking forward to trying the lighter main course, the linefish of the day to be served on a salad of saffron parmentier potatoes. This was not to be. The waitress informed us that the previous evening had seen large orders of fish and unfortunately there were none to be had for lunch. Not too much of a problem, I guess, but when you’re a vegetarian (as my sister is) and the only other choices are a lamb burger, roast beef wrap or lasagne with grilled chicken, things start getting tricky. In the end, we opted for another starter to share – and happily what arrived was enough to lift me out of my linefish disappointment.
Thankfully, the fettucine, with roasted butternut, toasted almonds, curls of fried ginger and lashings of Parmesan, was excellent and, as it turned out, more than enough for two. Exquisitely presented on a long skinny plate, with the pasta artfully piled up on one side of the plate, a honey cream drizzled on the other, it truly was a memorable dish that I can wholeheartedly recommend.
A glance at the evening menu gives a much better taste of what’s potentially on offer – from innovative vegetarian choices to the promise of honey, soy and orange steamed pork belly or a robust sirloin with Bearnaise sauce and pomme frites, each and every offering (coupled with a by-theglass wine suggestion) had something that had me interested. It’s a pity, then, that this restaurant, which clearly has put a lot of expense and thought into developing its space and an interesting menu, has such a diluted daytime self.
Average price of a three-course meal
without wine: R200.
Address: Black Horse Centre,
Corner
Dorp and Mark Streets,
Stellenbosch
Tel: 021 887-5204
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