Two Oceans Restaurant

Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve

So, since it was our seven-year anniversary, we decided to go to the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. This Reserve forms part of the Table Mountain National Parks. The park consists of various hiking trails, beaches, a lighthouse and the Two Oceans Restaurant. By way of background, for those who are unfamiliar with the park, it was a landmark used in navigation during the early 1400’s and now boasts phenomenal trails to discover the beauty of the Cape surrounded by the gorgeous scenery. Cape Point is also believed to be the meeting point of the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Oceans. However, the actual meeting point of the two oceans is Cape Agulhas.

Please note that you will have to pay an entrance fee to enter the reserve which costs R145.00 per adult. Alternatively, you can get a green card (available for Cape Town residents only) for a once-off fee. Which allows twelve entries into any of the Table Mountain National Parks. We, unfortunately, did not get around to doing this and just opted to pay the individual entrance fee.

The Lighthouse

Our first stop was the lighthouse and there are two ways which you can get to the top. You can either walk up a trail alternatively you can take the funicular called “The Flying Dutchman”. Which is a tram -like vehicle that’s driven on a railway up to the lighthouse. We opted for taking the funicular up to the lighthouse and taking the walking trail down. The funicular costs R55.00 per adult for a single trip (this is what we did). However, a return trip is R70.00 (this is more economical). They also offer specials, depending on the day, for pensioners and students. For the experience, I would definitely recommend you guys try it out. The ride itself lasts about four minutes or so. And if like us, you anticipate you would struggle walking uphill then take advantage of it.

Visiting the lighthouse is a must, the views from the top of the lighthouse are spectacular, definitely Instagram worthy. Just a word of caution, should you be visiting on a windy day (which was our experience), it gets extra windy up at the lighthouse, imagine windy and multiply it by ten.

Since we were celebrating our anniversary, we opted to have lunch at the Two Oceans Restaurant. As a result, we made a reservation for our lunch a few days in advance. Please ensure that you do make a reservation if you plan on stopping by because the restaurant gets extremely busy. After being seated, we were treated to complimentary bread. Which was still warm when placed on our table, coupled with delicious blobs of butter. The bread was fresh, soft and tasty.

Mains

We were particularly famished after tackling the walking trail down from the lighthouse. Therefore, we decided to go straight to our mains. The restaurant offers a two-course option, which allows you to choose two dishes between any starter, main and dessert. The two-course option costs R295.00 per person whilst the three-course option is R375.00 per person. However, we were advised by our waitress that we could order just a main for R225.00. They also have the option of seafood platters which are displayed on a chalkboard at the restaurant. The prices for these varying according to what you choose. I decided to go for the two-course option picking a main as well as a dessert. My husband on the other hand chose a platter option of the chalkboard. The platter comprised of a combination of prawns, langoustines and calamari with a side of Greek salad amounting to R375.00.

Slow-Cooked Lamb

For my main I chose the slow-cooked lamb which included lamb, spiced carrot, smoked mash and chimichurri. I was discouraged by our waitress to choose this particular main. She advised me that it was not one of her favourite on the menu. However, I am persistent in choosing a lamb option, if there is one on a menu, so I defiantly informed her that I would have the lamb. I was not disappointed by my choice as the lamb was cooked beautifully. And the accompaniments were well executed with such complimentary flavours. It really was enchanting which resulted in the contents of my plate being devoured in a matter of minutes.

This, however, is where my problem lies which you will notice from the picture, and that is the portion size. The meal was amazing however it was far too little. Especially taking into consideration that it is on the high end of what one usually would pay for a main meal, you would expect at least a little more and not of a feeling of wanting.

The same issue of the portion size was also experienced by my husband whose meal cost more than my own. But also, was devoured in a matter of minutes as the meal itself was delicious. However once again left the feeling of wanting more.

Dessert

I chose for dessert the lemon cheesecake which was accompanied by a raspberry coulis, white chocolate soil and vanilla ice cream. This dessert was amazing, the cheesecake was light and airy, and it paired beautifully with the raspberry coulis. It was also not intense with the lemon flavour, which tends to happen with most lemon cheesecakes. In this case the lemon flavour was subtle enabling one to relish in the cheesecake flavour. By rule of thumb, my husband does not partake in desserts. He just does not have a sweet tooth (yes, I am baffled myself). However, he shared quite a bit of my cheesecake and really did enjoy it.

Overall the restaurant produces delectable, well-plated meals. However, I found that the portion size in relation to the cost didn’t equate. For the experience and views, it’s definitely something to do even if you choose to just do the walk to the lighthouse. Please let me know whether you have visited the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve and what you experienced. For those of you who want to check it out, please see the contact details below.

If you liked this, why don’t you check out my post on my dining experience at Sevruga at the V and A Waterfront, Cape Town.