January 31, 2006
By Lucille Davie
I CAN confirm that Yum, the 2005 Johnnie Walker Eat Out Restaurant of the Year, is indeed yum.
Owner and chef Dario de Angeli, Eat Out's 2003 Chef of the Year, is deliciously unpretentious yet scrumptiously meticulous about everything. But then I guess you have to be if you want the accolade.
He says of the award: "I am very flattered, it is very generous of them to give it to us. It is a lovely accolade we will continue doing what we're doing."
Yum was in the Eat Outtop 10 restaurant list five times previously.
When asked what kind of cuisine the restaurant dishes up, De Angeli says Yum offers "new South African cuisine", which is "our interpretation of global food from South Africa world food by South African people".
A look at the menu, which he and his seven chefs will be changing every week this year, confirms that it is indeed global but with a South African twist, and lots of imagination.
For instance, wouldn't you be tempted by two dances of the sea, iced peanut butter and kassler soup, chocolate risotto or vegetarian bunny chow?
I went along for a meal with my brother and his girlfriend, who live in Monaco (where they must be tempted by all sorts of wonderful food), and we were pretty much knocked out by the meal.
We skipped the starters, not that they didn't look delightful those sea dances and peanut butter concoctions but we don't normally get through three courses and feel comfortable afterwards.
I ordered palate of lamb, at R100, with three versions of the meat: tartare of lamb with sweet chilli condiment, mustard-seared lamb loin and wasabi mash and cumin butter roasted lamb cubes. It came with ratatouille salad and curry oil. The lamb was tender and delicious, and perfectly flavoured.
My brother ordered the seafood trifle with complements, at R150. It consisted of layered trifle of champagne jelly, steamed mussels, ceviche of white fish, caviar, prawn tempura and tuna steak with saffron ice cream. The complements were green pea risotto, Asian salad, pickled ginger, melon and mint salad, seaweed, chopped onion and boiled egg, and breaded oysters.
My brother felt it was "good but I don't think there was enough seafood in it", while his girlfriend (they usually swap their plates half way through a meal) felt it was "more an experience' than a culinary delight".
She ordered the dish for which the restaurant is most famous Yum. It consists of roasted duck, berries, butternut mash, duck crackling and apricot reduction, and goes for R120. I can attest to its perfection as I had a taste. It was mouth-watering I could have eaten it all night, if my stomach were big enough.
My brother described the dish as "very crispy and juicy", and his girlfriend as "succulent with a tangy mixture of fruits".
We ordered a bottle of shiraz for R165 the usual price for a good wine at a top restaurant. The cheapest wine at Yum is R90, the most expensive is priced at R500.
The service was very good but not over-effusive, as is sometimes the case. The ambience was cool we sat outside surrounded by tables swathed in classic white linen and decorated with a simple fresh sunflower.
The bill came to R658 without a tip. There's parking across the road from the restaurant; booking a day in advance is necessary.
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