SEASONED CHEF CRAIG CORMACK LAUNCHES SALT RESTAURANT ON PAUL CLUVER WINE ESTATE
The anticipation of enjoyment
when we are invited to the media launch of a newish restaurant, which has been
open for several months but has not been very vocal while they started up, is
always good. . When it is on an iconic wine farm only 1 hour from Cape Town,
the excitement increases. And when we learned that the chefs involved are some
of Cape Town's best, we could not wait to see what was on offer. Chef Craig
Cormack runs The
Goose Roasters with his partner Beau du Toit, where they do catering, training, functions,
private dining and pop ups at festivals and markets and so much more. This is a
new venture for them. Chef Mechell Spann is the chef in residence at Salt. Craig
is also an expert on salt, its history and its uses and he had a huge
collection of salts on show in the restaurant. He lectures about it worldwide.
And you can taste it on the table and in the food
It is a lovely open and airy
restaurant with terrace space and a large front lawn; good for picnics prepared
by the chef. They do breakfast and lunch and booking is recommended. Contact
021 844 0012 or email saltatpaulcluver@gmail.com
And the Paul Cluver tasting room is close by, where you can taste their great
wines
Chef Craig Cormack with Paul
Cluver junior
We gathered on the terrace
and who should arrive to
congratulate Craig, Beau and Michel but chef Gordon Manuel and his wife Emma, who
manage the Pool Room restaurant at the next door farm, Oak Valley. They
are old friends
The canapés we were served are
actually tiny samples of the five starters on the menu
Smoked Ham Hock terrine, with
pickled red cabbage, crisp coppa ham,
apple and ale cured homemade mustard.
Well balanced and a very flavourful dish
A selection of them
The one in
the front had a crisp sliver of what tasted like roast lamb skin, heavenly
Confit chicken, prawn satay, a
dot of chilli jam, spring onion dressing and chicken liver paté
An impressive
dish, one to order again
Dr Paul
Cluver, with his wife Songvej, son Paul and his daughter Liesl Cluver Rust
The three chefs with Paul
Cluver talking about the restaurant. They told us that the original purpose of
the building was to hold the still when they made Calvados style apple brandy
Songvej Cluver, the matriarch
of this lively family
Her unusual name was given to her by her Norwegian father
Chef Craig told us that salt is
his passion: "I have been pairing wine and salts for the last few years,
and my salt collection now numbers 143 of an estimated 180 to 200 different
types, with all of them having different flavour profiles, from around the
world. I believe that I am the first chef to do this exercise both in South
African and the world”
The staff are professional and
very friendly and helpful
Chef Craig explains the food that we are
about to eat
Some of the Cluver Red wines. We
had the Pinot Noir; perfumed and delicate, full of fresh raspberry notes, with
rose petal perfume, carefully wooded, elegant and so good with food
A selection of Paul Cluver
white wines for lunch. Lynne loves the rich, round and buttery Estate Chardonnay
with its crisp citrus notes; it has been her Birthday Wine twice and may well
be it again! The excellent flagship 7 Flags Chardonnay did very well at the
Prescient Chardonnay awards this week, scoring 94 points, the top score. The
main difference is the amount of new wood used on the 7 flags. It is site and barrel
selected and made to last
Lynne enjoying our lunch with
journalist Norman McFarlane, Dr Paul Cluver and Eppie McFarlane
Eppie McFarlane in conversation
with Cluver Marketing manager Andrea Erwee
"Would you like Chardonnay
or Riesling with your main course?" asks Dr Paul. The Paul Cluver wines
are excellent and went very well with the food. They are made by son-in law
Andries Burger, who is married to Dr Paul's daughter Inge. Andries has won many
awards and his wines score very highly here and abroad
Chef Craig's salt collection
comes from all over the world. If you know of any unusual salts and can send or
bring them to him, he is always grateful. Several of these unusual and rare salts
are available to purchase
There were three salts on the
table for adding to the food or simply sampling. The food is very well seasoned, so we did not need to add anything. L to R volcanic Black Hawaiian salt, or
Hiwa Kai, Kala Namak aka Black Salt, Sanchal has a distinct sulphur aroma and
taste; and Hawaiian Sea Salt, aka Alaea, Alae, Hawaiian Red
Salt
Looking through a block of
Himalayan pink salt which is on every table. Food can be served on these blocks
of salt
The current menu with its very
interesting choices, it will change seasonally. The food is absolutely delicious
and we shall return for more
You can watch the chefs in the
open kitchen. Here Chef Beau is seasoning with salt!
Our main course was actually
four small samples from the mains on the menu; clockwise from the top: Crispy
Pork Belly, Salt Water Fish, Coconut Simmered Beef Brisket and Smoked Lamb
Shoulder
Another view of the main course
selection
and dessert was four small
samples of the 4 menu desserts. Clockwise from the top: Banana Rum Baba;
Chocolate Bar; Lemon Meringue and Stone Fruits. Also all amazing, with lots of
texture and different flavours. And all seasoned with a little salt which
improves sweet dishes enormously. The chocolate was an especially good match
for the Paul Cluver Reserve Pinot noir
This is the picnic that you can
order in advance and enjoy in the garden. Something we also plan to do soon. It
can include a selection of local cheeses, various cured cold meats, our famous
roasted tomato salad with wasabi cream cheese and basil pesto, pulled lamb
shoulder rosemary and garlic flat bread and Banana rum baba crème pat. muesli
crumble with poached fruit, bread and butter and Elgin apples. Phone them for a
quote, it has to be pre-ordered. The wine is extra
© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2018
