Vivat Bacchus

On Timeout's recommendation we decided to come here for lunch. We opted for the braaivleis grill (South African Barbecue) as we thought it would be nice to sample a good braai from outside the family. The grill boasted chicken wings, steak, boerewors, chips and coleslaw so we sat with Windhoeks in hand and anticipated the feast to come. Before I get to the food I should say something of the restaurant itself: very unassuming, stripped-back interior, more reminiscent of a wine-bar than a traditional restaurant. This turned out to be appropriate when the wine list arrived; the selection is large and very fine but a little on the pricey side, to my eye. The service was quick, the waiters were friendly and open to banter and the atmosphere was lively as the offices of London Bridge had crammed the place for lunch. A promising sign by any stretch of the imagination. What arrived was largely a disappointment, the chicken was cooked well but left no impression on the taste-buds whatsoever. The chips amounted to one large potato, thin-cut and dusted with salt, again well cooked but, again, utterly forgettable. The coleslaw was flavoursome but the measure of a good braai is in the wors and the steak. Unfortunately this is where things went very wrong, very quickly. On our platter, instead of Boerewors, was a Walls'™ sausage. It was a well cooked, brown on the outside, beige on the inside, pork, Walls'™ sausage. I was heartbroken, I have all the time in the world for an honest British banger, but you never promise me wors and provide Walls'™. To the uninitiated, boerewors is a beef sausage originally devised by Afrikaaner farmers in South Africa to make tougher cuts of meat more palatable. Rather than the traditional short links of sausage that characterise a banger a boerewors resembles a very large cumberland sausage-one long coil of ground meat which is well spiced. A good slice of wors in a bun is a pleasure for the senses and a friend of the family has complained that he has never been able to really enjoy another barbecued sausage after trying my Dad's home-made wors. Things looked bad, but having read this far you may be wondering how good the steak was to save a three-star rating for Vivat Bacchus. It was exquisite. A quick warning to the picky, it is served very rare as that best compliments the seasoning and produces an exceedingly succulent experience. I would use every appropriate superlative in my vocabulary to describe this steak, but I’ve already spent 70 words on it so I will end here by saying today I heard Dame Jane Goodall imitate the greeting of a wild chimpanzee and this steak came a close third in memorable experiences, just after graduating. We rounded off the meal with Milk Tart and a Fig tarte fine with ice cream. Both were extremely enjoyable and I would recommend either.