South Africa's Cape Town reminds me so much of San Francisco. Set against one of the 7 wonders of the world, the Table Mountains, the entire city is picturesque. But behind that facade, squatter areas abound a few minutes away from city center and even their lively night life on Long Street seems to be a replica of Tenderloin-esque minus the taxi drivers who refuse to turn on the meter and charge 2-3x more because it is already after 10 pm.  This is when Uber becomes a necessity because even with a 1.3x surcharge, you still get home without getting ripped off by the regular cabbies.  Despite that though, I was able to enjoy what this town has to offer - seafood and game meats galore with an African/fusion twist.

(1) The first stop was Belthazar, one of the city's top steak restaurants, at the V&A Waterfront. I don't eat steak, but my travel buddies were craving for meat. By quickly glancing at the menu (ok, fine, I read about them even before my trip), they did have a variety of seafood available. We were seated promptly at their outdoor seating area. Despite the gusty wind blowing on our faces, Belthazar's staff provided us a 101 of what to eat when in Cape Town and what to drink. Each glass of wine comes with a wine tag; I'm calling out all restaurants to adopt this same concept. Special mention goes out to their chicken liver peri peri uniquely paired with sweet sticky bun. This is off the charts!

Tastefully unique. Chicken liver peri peri with sweet sticky bun. I don't think I will ever get this anywhere else.

Take your pick: wildbeest, warthog, springbok, impala, kudu, eland, gemsbok or ostrich meat?

Belthazar's seafood platter - not the freshest seafood of all time but gave us a taste of South African creatures from the sea.

Nice concept, especially for a food blogger to not forget and to correctly spell what this wine is.

 (2) The next day, we were on a hunt for brunch food. Our hungry stomachs brought us to Weylandts, an upscale furniture shop, with a cafe called The Kitchen where most of their clientele choose fabrics or style of wood while sipping a drink. For us, of course, we were there to eat and shoot our food til our heart's content.

I could stay in this furniture store for the whole day.

Yes, I am a positive influence to my friends although I usually don't stand while shooting.

Our brunch for the day on the iPhone.

 (3) Amarula dominates in this town so I drank a shot of it. This is not my cup of tea but could have been better as a cocktail mix.
 (4) We headed out to Simon's Town for a late lunch and dropped in this simple fish and chips establishment. Beware, they put tons of vinegar on those hake and chips.

(5) Surprisingly, there is no Starbucks in Cape Town. Rejoice Starbucks haters! Locally grown cafes, such as Melissa's and Mugg and Bean, are the lay of the land.

Strawberry milkshake at Melissa's

Not a big fan of red velvet, but this one from Melissa's passes the mark.

(6) During one of our dinners, we were able to snag a table at Aubergine Restaurant. There was a snafu on our reservations but the staff pleasantly accommodated us. This long-time establishment serves contemporary East meets West cuisine. The South African oysters below was the star of the show, while my fish curry main entree reminded me of the curries during my travels in India.

Ginormous South African oysters

(7) I always seek out for best spot for watching the sunset. 12 Apostles Hotel and Spa's The Leopard Bar on Camps Bay fits that bill. Forget that the food here is so-so. I really did enjoy people watching though.


(8) I've never had so many milkshakes in my life, but my friend swears by the milkshakes at Mugg and Bean, South Africa's Starbucks.

Vanilla milkshake at Mugg and Bean

(9) If Jollibee is to the Philippines, then Nando's is to South Africa. They even sell their sauces at the airport!

(10) Because of the sign below, I sought out a bobotie and found one at Moyo Restaurant at the Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden made out of kudu ground meat. In addition to that, I also ordered the ostrich bolognaise spaghetti, which is part of their kid's menu. The 15-year old looking waitstaff asked me why I wanted a kiddie meal. "I'm a kid at heart," I quipped.

Kudu bobotie with rice and prunes on the background.

My kiddie meal: spaghetti ostrich bolognaise. Ostrich meat has a distinct acquired taste.

Rooibos is popular in this part of the world so I was not surprised to see a rooibos creme brulee on the menu. I do love the taste of rooibos.

 (11) I'm saving the best for last. The gastronomic highlight of my trip goes to Savoy Cabbage Restaurant and Champagne Bar. There were many intriguing appetizers and entrees on the menu, but I had to restrain myself from ordering too much (to avoid getting a chuckle out of the waitstaff just like what happened at Seville) since I was eating on my own.

Brain freeze on this garlic gazpacho with Cordoba grapes, almond topped with red gazpacho granita

Smoked salmon on buckwheat pancake with grapefruit jelly, creme fraiche and keta caviar

Roasted peaches tonka bean ice cream. The tonka bean is an unusual spice that you don't see in everyday cooking. It gives a delicate and slightly fruity flavor to the ice cream.