They say the best things come in small packages, and that seems to be the case for a little-known restaurant that only takes a handful of diners at a time and is completely affordable, by most fine-dining standards.
Wolfgat, an unassuming seaside eatery located in Paternoster, a historic fishing village on the West Coast of South Africa, was recently awarded the title of Restaurant of the Year at the World Restaurant Awards.
At Wolfgat, which means “wolf cave,” the focus is on indigenous cuisine, like seafood, lamb, venison and foraged plants. And get this, none of the staff have any formal culinary training under their belts. There’s no traditional hierarchy; there’s no distinction between chef, sommelier and front of the house staff.
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According to the restaurant’s chef/owner, Kobus van der Merwe, Wolfgat couldn’t exist anywhere else. “It’s intrinsic to its environment and we collect things that you can only find around these parts.”
Travel + Leisure says dishes “rival noted eateries across the globe,” with the restaurant’s seven-course tasting menu clocking in at about $60 per person, “offering visitors an intimate experience coupled with fresh ingredients at a low price.”
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Bookings are capped at an intimate 20 diners or so, since the staff is so small and the menu needs to be sustainable. But that only adds to its charm.
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Representatives of the awards panel wrote:
If mother nature erected a sign saying ‘build restaurant here’, it would surely point to Wolfgat. Chosen from all the inspected big plates, our inaugural Restaurant of the Year is a small, remote haven of purity and good taste in every sense.
According to the New York Post, in order to get to Wolfgat, “hungry gourmands will have to fly into Capetown and rent a car for the 2.5-hour drive along the coast. The tasting menu costs about $60, and wine pairings can be added for an extra $40.”
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Not sure if you want the hassle? Here’s how one Restaurant Awards “inspector” described the restaurant:
“The place is super simple, rustic yet perfectly elegant. We sat by the fireplace. The restaurant is directly on the beach with an ocean view. We could watch the fishermen go out, come back and empty the catch from their brightly coloured boats. The village of Paternoster is stucco white, like somewhere in Greece, charming and not touristy. Essentially, it’s a dream of perfect balance, unspoilt charm and accessibility. You know that feeling you get when you feel that you are among the first people to discover a place?”
