If you’re looking for a lunchtime spot in the Cape Town CBD, then look no further – The Shortmarket Club has introduced a prix fixe menu for its Monday – Saturday lunchtime. You might ask what a Prix Fixe menu us – commonly seen in the bistros of Paris, a Prix Fixe menu is a set menu at a set price. “In all major European cities you’ll find prix fixe specials in the Autumn and Winter, because at lunchtime people are on the lookout for great food and great value,” explains Simon Widdison, manager and co-owner of The Shortmarket Club. “This new menu ticks all the same boxes.”
Dishes on the prix fixe menu will change often, and occasionally with the whims of the chef, but diners can be certain of an adventurous three-course menu offering a pair of options per course. With the wintry cold fronts lashing harmlessly against the wide skylights of this top-floor restaurant, expect hearty cooking with a healthy dollop of Randles’ signature sophistication.
To kick things off Randles has conjured up an impressive menu offering ranging from hearty oxtail ragu paired with ‘fennel three ways’ to local line fish, perfectly grilled and plated with a coconut masala cream with fresh lime and curry leaf. Some winter warmth arrives courtesy of the playful Baji Scotched Egg with spiced lamb farce, ginger tahini and green mango atchar. Feeling adventurous? Look out for the roti filled with slow-roasted goat shoulder caramelized with spicy preserved fig harissa, roasted garlic, and goat’s milk ricotta. To finish, choose between a Mozzarella and lavender crème brûlée, and a generous cheese course. All perfect fare to keep the winter chills at bay.
While offering a value-for-money taste of the award-winning cuisine of The Shortmarket Club, the prix fixe is also an opportunity for diners to enjoy a sneak preview of dishes auditioning for a slot on the à la carte menu.
“The prix fixe menu will revolve around dishes that are generous, hearty and wintry, but the focus will also be on food that works really well with wine,” adds Randles. This is because Randles and Widdison have convinced a handful of Swartland Independent Producers to introduce a wine you’re unlikely to find on any other wine list. Each month a new winemaker from the region will put their own unique stamp on the menu, pairing a carafe of wine from their cellar with Randles’ winter-friendly food.
First up, and until the end of July, is the talented young winemaker Jasper Wickens, assistant-winemaker at AA Badenhorst Family Wines, who brings his unique unfiltered wines from his acclaimed Swerwer range to The Shortmarket Club carafes. If you’re a fan of Jasper, then the The Shortmarket Club is one of the first restaurants to list his just-released Swerwer Red 2016, a blend of Grenache, Cinsaut and Tinta Barocca as well as his Swerwer White 2016, a Chenin Blanc. August features Ryan Mostert of Silvervis and Terracura Wines followed in September by Tremanye Smith of Blacksmith Wines.
The three-course prix fixe menu at The Shortmarket Club is priced at R360/R280 per person, including/excluding a carafe of wine from the month’s featured winemaker. Available at lunchtime only, Monday to Saturday, until 30 September 2018.
