Tired of the lack of vegetarian options and rather uneventful menu options at so many restaurants in Cape Town, we were ready for some creativity and innovation.
The Place – is located right next to Cavendish Mall in an unassuming side street and can be easily mistaken as just another coffee shop. But shortly after having been seated we realised that this place was different. We were warmly greeted with a huge smile of our lovely waitress. O'Ways is the size of a typical coffee shop. Many small tables that comfortably seat two to four people, a coffe counter along the side, and the kitchen in the back with an opening that allows a small peek on where the magic happens. The interior is nothing special, but then the mismatched furniture, integrated tea shop and random deco articles give the place its warmth and personality. Going to a place like this we certainly didn't expect five star service. When ever we looked around and made eye contact with staff we got a huge smile in return. This is a happy place. Even the chef herself, after carefully checking every single dish before it crossed the pass, made the rounds to chat and make sure everyone was happy. When we received a warm refreshment cloth with the menus was probably when we fell in love with this place.
The Menu – is something else - combinations we've never seen, dishes we've never heard of, in short, one big adventure. O'Ways doesn't serve meat or alcohol, but we didn't lacked either with the exciting menu choice of Asian fusion dishes. It was quite a challenge to decide which two dishes we were going to order. In the end we settled for 'Oat Raviolis delighted with Butternut-Sage ragout on creamy spinach' for R46 and 'Har Gau braised in Black Bean and Cashew nuts sauce, complemented with bell pepper diamonds' for R46. Besides their food menu O'ways prides itself with an extensive tea menu, which again, poses a tough choice. In the end 'Herbal Infusion with lemon balm, peppermint, chamomile, berry leaves, lavender, orange blossoms, lemongrass and heather' won the race.
The Meal – After placing our order we were surprised with an amuse bouche (who expects an amuse bouche when having lunch at a coffee shop?). The aubergine fritters with a Dijon mustard humus, mango relish and multi-grain bread were divine and gave us a pretty good impression of what to expect next. The oat raviolis were new ground in every respect. I knew all the flavours on the plate, but the combination was wonderful and refreshingly new. The Har Gau was exceptionally delicious and to our surprise, based on the taste, might as well have been a meat dish. Again, the combination was original and unexpected. Carried away by the great service and atmosphere, with a silly grin on our faces, we couldn't say no to dessert. We ordered a 'cardamom tofu cheese cake with mango sauce' for R32 to share. Only that we then got two, one slice each, for the price of one! The tea, served with a whole range of paraphernalia, was the perfect way to end the meal.
The Wallet – This is unbeatable! Not a single dish on the menu is over R 50! Considering the first class service and the amazing food, this is the deal of a lifetime.
The Rating – 8.5 Uhm, where are my socks?
Would we go back? Yes! Can we go tomorrow?
About the place: http://www.oways.co.za/
