5713 km and 21 days from where I had first started my journey in Zimbabwe, Victoria Falls; I was finally strutting around in Cape Town. The whole journey was an out of the world experience, every place I went to was so different from the other, the landscapes, the people, the language, I saw it change with every passing kilometer. Will 1 post of endless descriptions and pictures do this justice?... of course not! not even if I tried. So where do I start...from the end, from Cape Town, a little piece of heaven, a haven for adventurous foodies and the casual snackers alike, vine covered valleys and home of the famous Table top mountain. But Cape Town had so much to offer, and even this single destination can't be described with a single post, heck I don't think even I have had enough of it just yet. As a traveling foodie, I have just one requirement and that is to indulge in some of the best street food the city has to offer and to engage in some artistic fine dining concoctions. So I had set out for some good fine dining.. some 40 minutes out of cape town and I found myself in yet another vineyard, Constantia. Nothing got boring in Cape Town, every time I sat in a car for more than 30 minutes, I felt I was being taken to another country, every vineyard had something different, every landscape had a quirk. Constantia was beautiful, arched trees creating shadowed paths, huge wine estates flanked on other either sides of the road and bouquets of flowers lining each street... would you believe this is apparently one of the smaller wine estates... I didn't! As we drove through the windy streets, my destination crept up from round the corner, I was worried that the cabby was lost, but there it was... Constantia Uitsig. The pictures on the website were beautiful, but to be here in person... oh wow! Even the cabby was taken a-back by the simple beauty of this place; both of us looking on either side like kids in awe as if we found wonderland. There were wine farms as far as my eyes could see. I was checked in and immediately taken to my spa treatment room where I was booked in for a massage. I felt like royalty, I felt relaxed and most of all, I felt privileged... privileged to be able to experience this. As my muscles were being churned to mush, gray clouds pushed themselves into my scenery and hung low over the vineyard. It felt as if Cape Town wanted me to know what it looked like in all weather temperaments. The beauty of this place regardless of how blue or gray the sky was, tickled me; I giggled and smirked and hopped back to my suite, this was all just so overwhelming... The sound of the rain softly landing on the grassy lawns, the trees bustling and cool gentle winds swooping through the vineyards.. it was invigorating to say the least. Soon enough it was 7pm and time for my dinner at La Colombe; one of 3 restaurants on the estate. I wanted to see what the fuss was about, why this restaurant was consistently featured amongst the top restaurants in South Africa and why it was ranked the top 12 restaurants in the world by San Pellegrino in 2010. I walked in to a candle lit room, not big, and not too small either, but quaint enough to feel like home. There was an outdoor area too, but considering the gray clouds floating above, i don't think anyone would would have liked to dare. The furniture and decor seemed very minimal, the chair covers were simple and had a vintage appeal. There were 2 other tables that seemed occupied at this point. Hmmm.. I was just hoping the restaurant still had its charm. I was on their website for days ogling at their food. I was seated at my table set for one :) wonderfully prepared for me and me alone. As I made myself comfortable I was greeted by my server, Lucy. Immediately she asked me what I would like for my welcome drink and quickly narrated 2 options of delicate white wines from the region and mentioned of a blanc de blanc off of their farms... and that was of course what I went with. Champagne... why not, besides it was off of their vineyards; it was a 2008 Methode Cap Classique Blanc de Blanc Brut (if i remember correctly). Just as Lucy laid my glass of bubbly down, she advised me that she would bring in the menu for me to glance at and will then dish out my amuse bouche. As soon as she said that... haha.. I saw her take off swiftly and come back with an Easel and a blackboard decorated with neatly scribbled dishes. WOW! this was indeed unique... the thought of it just put a smile to my face. First on the menu was.. *drum roll* Oysters!!! My heart did a little dance. I absolutely love oysters... they make me go weak and although I had made up my mind to have the gourmand menu... those oysters were definitely making their way on to my table. I glanced at the rest of the menu and good GOD! I wanted it all... springbok, foie gras, quail, alaskan king crab, scallops... JESUS! this was just about the most difficult menu I have ever seen.. how on earth is a person able to make up his mind with that assortment... I was going for the gourmand menu without doubt.. a degustation menu with 6 courses and all my favorites were on it bar the oysters, but i had to have them. While I sat fantasizing about all the beautiful food I was surrounded with, Lucy was back and gave me a detailed run down of the whole menu, and by detailed I mean DETAILED.. almost allowing me to recreate the dish with my imagination from start to finish; a description of the infusions and the sauces and the delicateness of the flesh of the scallops... God she was good! I told her that it was going to be the gourmand menu for me... and all that for 750 Rand (under 350 AED) with a wine pairing too... Of course the price was unbeatable... I pay 350 dirhams eating at a casual dining place in Dubai and without the wine. So off went the easel and out came my amuse Bouche. A first glimpse of my little wooden platter assured me that I was in for a treat. Sat in front of me were: a small pastry tart tartine with some beetroot, caramelized onion and a smidgeon of goat cheese on top; the second and the most beautiful off the 3 was an egg with its top neatly sliced off, holding some warm celeriac veloute in it; and the last was a rolled up marinated beef tataki. Each of them were unique in their texture, flavor and look. Right after that came out my oysters... Oh God! They looked as gorgeous as anticipated considering Lucy's detailed description. They were lightly poached to take off any strong flavors and coated with a gentle foam (can't remember of what?!?!). But good lord... they were amazing :)   The first course came out with a lovely reyneke; a delicate light white wine from the stellenbosch region. It was a perfect pairing with the supple creamy alaskan crab. The Asian influence in this dish was pretty obvious with the dashi mirin Jelly and the various textures put together were just divine. Every dish had immense thought behind it, and the presentation was a visual masterpiece. This was my favorite dish and my favorite wine pairing too. For starters it had foie gras.. if I said I loved Oysters... I would say that I would marry a "Foie Gras" if it was a person. The smooth texture, the flavor... I was melting... and with the bukettraube it was christmas in my mouth. An absolutely perfect pairing and I don't know how else to express it, but the sweetness of the wine in combination to the foie gras just made the whole dish sparkle. The rhubarb puree had a lovely thickness to it and added the right amount of tart to every morsel or the delicate quail. This next dish came out with a Sequillo; an elegant light white wine with high acidity, a great pairing with the scallops and is made from the chenin blanc and grenache blanc grapes. The fruity flavors in the wine was a perfect coupling with this dish. I don't think it requires much description, it was heaven and I do hope the photographs are able to capture its awesomeness. It was yum.. the glazed pork belly was so tender it split with just the touch of my fork, and the scallops were simply perfection. With a 6 course menu, you obviously need a little breather. This Grannysmith Granita was exactly what my palette needed; a light and refreshing crunch of apple flavored soothing ice crystals. By this time it was almost approaching 9pm and boy was this place bustling. A few couples tucked away in cozy nooks, a few groups of people enjoying culinary at its best, it was lovely. The servers and waiters however didn't fall victim to the busy restaurant; they were sharp, as attentive as ever, having everything delivered promptly and with undeterred enthusiasm. Next up, I was presented with a Vriesenhof Pinotage. Up until I had visited Cape Town, my favorite wine was a shiraz, but a wine tasting at Trawal (in Cape Town) earlier this trip had me all goo-goo-gaa-gaa over Pinotage. This wine was just warming, and practically felt like a little hug. The smell of aromatic cherries and raspberries immediately fill the nose of the glass and the silky texture of the wine compliments this dish beautifully. This dish had sweetbreads (of the thymus).. SWEETBREADS!!! I wouldn't have dared ever, but I was here.. so I had to give it a try and holy cow! It was delicious, crisp and slightly salty on the outside but soft and slightly fluffy on the inside. And the veal was simply magnificent, soft tender, juicy and the color...GORGEOUS! This was the first time I have had it prepared this way (sous vide). This last dish was so exciting that I forgot to take a picture of the wine... but I did make a note of it.. it was Constatia Uitsig's own Muscat D'Alexandrie. This dish was so inviting that I realized I hadn't taken pictures of it up until my right side was instantly devoured. I love panna cotta, and the texture of this panna cotta was just right... not too rubbery, not too soft that it loosened into a mess... it was a perfect combination of soft and slippery; the cashew pebbles gave it a yummy crunch and the foam just pulled your lips back into a smile. This whole experience was just amazing and to top it off, Sous chef Matt Manning was kind enough to grace my table to say a quick hello :) I was delighted!! The very evening Chef Scott Kirton was off receiving an award for La Colombe, where they ranked 10 at the Eat Out DStv Food Network Restaurant Awards for 2012... BIG CONGRATULATIONS on that! He talked about his aspirations for the restaurant, of how both Scott and Matt are trying to move La Colombe to higher ranks in the San Pellegrino award. Having worked with Gordon Ramsay and a few other highly ranked restaurants in Europe, Chef Matt is in his zone, perched right beside Chef Scott Kirton. With a long list of awards to its name La Colombe had been outstanding to me, it felt like a culinary Narnia; and with Chef's Scott and Matt fathering the whole show there is only more good to come. Enjoy! Eaterally Yours, Drina C.