Wolfgat lunch
So why did a tiny restaurant in a tiny seaside village on a rather remote West Coast of South Africa become one of the best restaurants in the world?
In 2019, Wolfgat and its chef Kobus Van der Merwe were crowned best restaurant in the world. A ‘royal’ title that many restaurants would give an arm and a leg for. I first visited Wolfgat just a few months after it opened in 2016 and I was totally struck by the ‘simplicity’ and sincerity of the concept.
His ‘little’ beach restaurant’s building dates to more than 130 years ago, with the Wolfgat cave on the premises – a site of great archaeological and geological significance.
The chef works behind a worn wooden table, preparing dish after dish for a select few diners.
Surrounded by his kitchen helpers, ingredients are locally sourced and foraged. They are presented in a beautiful and minimalist way.
A touch of drama arrives when a wild branch of african sage is smoked at the table so that the mussels that hang in the branches get a delicate herbal smokiness. Kobus introduces the recipes and proposes local Swartland wines that I had never seen before.
The combinations all worked, flavor profiles, textures, colors, elegance and simplicity. And all this with a background of dark blue Atlantic ocean lapping on the pearly white beach below.
Now, in 2022, the tiny little beach house is still there. Nothing much has changed. Just a film crew photographing all the dishes in the main room, no foreign clients because of Covid, and Kobus still running his small scale operation with utter perfection and minimal fuss. Gentle food, totally unique to this coast line made by a gentle soul.
There is a strong focus on seafood, enhanced by wild herbs, beach succulents, and seaweed. All with a perfect twist to pure fresh harmony on the plate.
I met up with him 2 years ago in Belgium at the restaurant of his food brother Willem Hiele. And so now it’s like having lunch at a friend’s place again here in Paternoster.
One big problem with Wolfgat has is getting a table …obviously.
