How’s Your Yaki
New opening reported
Opened February 2026
Africa & Middle East · South Africa
Where to eat in Cape Town
Cape Town mixes Cape Malay spice, fresh Atlantic seafood and fire cooking with winelands polish. Its fine dining ranks among the world's best while some of its most distinctive eating is in modest, family-run spots.
Cape Town at a glance
- What to eat
- Cape Malay cuisine (Bo-Kaap); Fresh seafood and pickled fish; Braai; Bobotie and game; Weskus snoek (Cape mackerel).
- When to go
- Best: March–May and September–October. Also good: February and November. Hardest: January and December.
- Top tables
- This guide lists 9 award-winning restaurants, starting with La Colombe, FYN, Salsify at The Roundhouse and The Pot Luck Club.
- Where locals eat
- Local favorites off the prestige lists include Seven Colours Eatery, Bao Down, Vadivelu and Mariam's Kitchen.
- Markets
- Neighbourgoods Market at Old Biscuit Mill and Oranjezicht City Farm Market.
The dish to eat here
Bobotie
Spiced curried mince with dried fruit, baked under a golden egg custard.
The best three: Bo-Kaap Kombuis, Biesmiellah at the Lounge, Jonkershuis Constantia.
On the Restaurant 100
- FYN No. 37 in the world
- La Colombe No. 68 in the world
- Salsify at the Roundhouse No. 5 in Africa
- Chefs Warehouse at Beau Constantia No. 6 in Africa
- The Pot Luck Club No. 16 in Africa
- Mzansi No. 23 in Africa
45places in Cape Town, ready to save to your trip
5Dishes to tryWhere to eat each one, and how to cook it at home10Romantic dinnersTen tables for date night
What is in the 45
9 award-winning4 local favorites2 markets5 sandwich shops10 romantic dinners5 breakfast spots10 new openings6 dish spots
What to eat in Cape Town, and where
Each dish comes with the places that do it best. Tap Add to my trip on the ones you want, or find them on the map above.
Gatsby
giant sandwich piled with chips and meat, a Cape Flats classic
The best place to eat it in Cape Town
- 1Mariam's Kitchen
Order: Classic Gatsby sandwich
Local favorite for the Cape Flats classic.
From our verified guide listings
Cape Malay curry
mildly sweet, fragrant curries with roti or rice
The best place to eat it in Cape Town
- 1Bo-Kaap Kombuis
Order: Chicken, lamb or seafood curry with roti
Cited as a top place to try fragrant Cape Malay cooking.
Seen in timeout.com, capetourism.com
Bobotie
spiced minced-meat bake topped with egg custard
The 2 best places to eat it in Cape Town
- 1Bo-Kaap Kombuis
Order: Bobotie with denningvleis
Named for bobotie by two publishers.
Seen in timeout.com, capetourism.com - 2Mama Africa
Order: Bobotie
Lively live-music restaurant that serves a notable bobotie.
Seen in cityunscripted.com · worth confirming hours before you go
Braai
South African wood-fire barbecue, with boerewors
The best place to eat it in Cape Town
- 1Marble
Order: Fire-grilled meats
Fire-focused grill restaurant.
From our verified guide listings
Snoek
local fish, often grilled with apricot jam glaze
The 2 best places to eat it in Cape Town
- 1Kalky's
Order: Snoek fish and chips
Harbour-side fish and chips institution.
Seen in capetourism.com · worth confirming hours before you go - 2Snoekies
Order: Snoek fish and chips
Hout Bay fish-and-chips spot.
Seen in capetourism.com · worth confirming hours before you go
The most celebrated tables
The top 9 restaurants in Cape Town, per World's 50 Best 2025.
More award winners
La Colombe
World's 50 Best #55 (2025)
Playful tasting menu in a forest setting.
FYN
World's 50 Best #82 (2025)
South African ingredients cooked with Japanese precision.
Salsify at The Roundhouse
World's 50 Best #88 (2025, new entry)
Seasonal cooking with Atlantic views.
The Pot Luck Club
Featured in Eater's Cape Town essentials
Sunday brunch favourite with sharing plates.
Galjoen
Time Out Cape Town best list; Infatuation reviewed
Daily set menu built around local fish.
The Happy Uncles
Time Out Cape Town best list; Infatuation reviewed
Tasting menu celebrating Cape Malay cooking.
Marble
Time Out Cape Town best list
Open-fire cooking and a famous ribeye.
Curate
Time Out Cape Town best list
Reimagined South African staples in a multi-course menu.
Chef's Warehouse at Beau Constantia
Time Out Cape Town best list
Good-value tasting menus with winelands views.
When to go and what is in season
Cape Town food calendar: month by month → What is in season, what to eat and the food festivals each month.
JFMAMJJASOND
Peak Mar–May, Sep–OctShoulder Feb, NovHard Jan, Dec
Why these months
KimKim (updated Aug 2022): spring (Sep-Oct) and autumn (Mar-May) shoulder seasons are best overall with fewer travelers and lower prices; Dec-Jan are the peak months with the highest prices, booking essential; winter (Jun-Aug) is cool and rainy (9-10 rain days/month) but cheapest; crowds ease and prices drop in February. 'Avoid' means peak price/crowds, not poor weather. Shoulder 2 and 11 are our reading.
In season
- Wine harvest (grape picking at some wineries) Mar–May KimKim: autumn (Mar-May) is when the annual wine harvest is underway; exact months not narrowed by source
Food events
- Stellenbosch Wine Festival Feb Late February (KimKim, 2022)
- Stellenbosch Fine Wine and Food Festival Aug Early August (KimKim, 2022)
Meal costs and tipping (ZAR)
- Mid-range: R400-R600 per person for three courses with half a bottle of house wine (moderate); cheap up to R400 (World Travel Guide, Mar 2023). CONFLICT: South African Tourism (undated) says moderate restaurants R120-R180 per person for a one or two-course meal
- Tasting menus from: Over R600 expensive tier (World Travel Guide); high-end R1,000-R2,000 per head (South African Tourism)
- Tipping: About 10% service charge may be on the bill; 10% tipping is customary (World Travel Guide)
From published guides and tourism boards. Months are our mapping of how guides describe the seasons; 2027 event dates are expected, not confirmed. Prices come from single sources of varying age, so treat them as a rough guide. Compare cities by month
Secret discoveries
Locally loved places that are not on the big prestige lists.
institution
Seven Colours Eatery
Order: The daily African iPlate, boerewors
Relaxed Black-owned spot serving home-style local dishes at a price well below the Waterfront norm.
Seen in timeout.com, theinfatuation.com
counter
Bao Down
Order: Steamed buns with spicy Korean fried chicken
Casual pan-Asian baos and sharing plates that locals fill most evenings.
Seen in timeout.com, theinfatuation.com
family-run
Vadivelu
Order: Durban lamb curry
Family-run contemporary Indian with a lively street-spilling terrace.
Seen in timeout.com, theinfatuation.com
institution
Mariam's Kitchen
Order: A classic Gatsby sandwich
Go-to for the Gatsby, a hulking local sandwich tradition; also on Eater's essentials list as reported by Eat Out.
Seen in theinfatuation.com, eater.com (via eatout.co.za summary) · worth confirming hours before you go
Food markets in Cape Town
Chefs and guides in Cape Town
Cooking classes, chef hosts and food-guide businesses.
- The Bo-Kaap Cooking Tour Chef / cooking host
Cape Malay cooking in Bo-Kaap - Cape Town Culinary Tours Food / market guide
Cape Town food culture and local culinary history
More in Africa & Middle East
Awards come from the guides named on each listing (World's 50 Best 2025). Researched October 25, 2026. Restaurants change; confirm hours, reservations and current stars before you go. Some addresses, phone numbers and websites come from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), so call ahead to confirm. Local favorites are editorial picks, not rankings.
Chef Amazing’s lists for Cape Town: where locals eat, new openings, romantic dinners, ice cream, cooking classes and more, each place with what to order. Cooking classes in Cape Town: who teaches, what you cook, how long and how to book.
Every place in this guide, A to Z (38)
- Balducci – Sea Point
- Bao Down Green Point
- Bo-Kaap Kombuis Bo-Kaap
- Cape to Curry Cape Town
- Cape Town Culinary Tours
- Chef's Warehouse at Beau Constantia Constantia
- Cosy Corner Wynberg
- Curate Bantry Bay
- Cut-in-2 Bergvliet
- Fishmonger – Newlands
- Fogo Portuguese Kitchen
- FYN City Centre
- Galjoen District Six
- Golden Dish Gatesville, Athlone
- Hemelhuijs City Bowl
- How’s Your Yaki
- Jason Bakery Green Point
- Kalky's Kalk Bay
- Kleinsky's Delicatessen Sea Point
- Kleinsky’s Constantia
- La Colombe Constantia
- Localino
- Mama Africa City Centre
- Marble V&A Waterfront
- Mariam's Kitchen Foreshore / Bo-Kaap area
- Mzoli Meat, Grill & Gardens
- Neighbourgoods Market at Old Biscuit Mill
- Olympia Cafe Kalk Bay
- Oranjezicht City Farm Market
- Prima Burger Wynberg
- Salsify at The Roundhouse Camps Bay
- Seven Colours Eatery V&A Waterfront (Battery Park)
- Snoekies Hout Bay
- The Bo-Kaap Cooking Tour
- The Happy Uncles Salt River
- The Pot Luck Club Woodstock
- Truth Coffee City Bowl
- Vadivelu Gardens / Tamboerskloof
Chef Amazing · Will Travel for Food · Food cities · 250 food markets · The Best 100