Strandkombuis revisited

We have been doing business with "Die Strandkombuis" Open Air Seafood Restaurant for many, many years and so it was a great pleasure to be invited by Bastian, one of the owners, to a complementary lunch on Sunday.

We set off just after 11h00 with a sense of anticipation and a grumbling tummy for the forty-five minute drive through to Yzerfontein which is on the coast between Saldanha and Capetown. A sense of anticipation because we had been there before but a good few years back, and a grumbling tummy because we were hungry, but you need to be hungry if you're going to Strandkombuis!

The turnoff, which is just outside of the town is well signposted so you shouldn't miss it, it's on the right hand side.

It's four kilomtres of gravel road to the sand dunes upon which the restaurant is perched, not really suitable for my touring bike but dual purpose bikes would have a ball, we were in the bakkie so we were able to enjoy the drive through the fynbos veld.

The stairway leading up onto the dunes and the wooden walkway, constructed to protect the sensitive flora gives you an introduction to how well the restaurant is established, this is no ordinary or casual beach restaurant but more like an experience which you will definitely enjoy.

We were given a lovely table right next to the beach where we could appreciate the gentle breeze which kept the heat at bay, the flowers were a legacy from a wedding the previous day and not a regular feature. We were quite early but it was lovely to relax with a glass of wine as the place gradually filled up.

We spotted Natie, who along with his lovely wife Marie have had the place for many years, bringing the first loaves of bread out of the charcoal ovens - the food was about to start and I was eagerly awaiting the first course, hoping that it was the same as I had experienced before.

Just look at that home made bread, it is unbelievably good, and the soup.......

is to die for! It was exactly as I remembered; chunky, thick, creamy fish soup and quite definitely the best I have ever had. I resisted the temptation to go back for seconds, I could have quite easily but I knew that there was still lots of food to come.
There is a gap between the soup and the main course so we decided to go for a stroll on the beach to get ready for the feast.

The boardwalk leads right down from the restaurant onto the beach and we walked down towards the town, it's a lovely wide beach and I took my shoes off to feel the sand between my toes, I got my feet wet in the bitterly cold water but we didn't walk too far, I didn't want to miss out on any of the food!

The restaurant looks lovely from the beach, the canvas tent is a permanent arrangement and is particularly effective in the summertime as a relief from the relentless heat.

We headed back, I was getting hungry again and I knew that it wasn't long before the main meal was to start, anxiously I urged Janet towards the steps in front of the place.

Sure enough there were now a lot more people than there had been when we left and Natie was moving amongst the crowd announcing the main course,

but really there's no need to rush, there's plenty of food and what a spread! There was mussels (from my farm!) in a creamy sauce, potatoes, yellowtail, snoek, prawns, calamari, pumpkin fritters, salads and pate's and they kept it coming.

Just look at my first plate! Those prawns were excellent, that calamari was tender, the fish was done to perfection the mussels were sublime. I didn't even bother to photograph my second plate, I needed some more of the fish.
We relaxed with our last glass of wine, I considered going back for perhaps just a few strips of calamari or maybe another prawn or two but just couldn't make it and besides I was now ready for the dessert.

They end off with "koeksusters" and coffee. A koeksuster (for those who are unfamiliar with them) is a traditional Afrikaans delicacy made of plaitted dough deep fried in a sweet syrup, absolutely delicious but you have to be careful when eating them as the syrup drips off your chin and elbows! A perfect way to end a seafood meal.
I enthusiastically recommend the Strandkombuis to you, it is a wonderfully relaxed yet slightly upmarket experience, perhaps a contradiction in terms for an open air seafood restaurant but it works superbly. A combination of casual food cooked on open fires in a casual environment but with a touch of class that makes all the difference.
You are welcome to take your own wine, the cost is R200 per head which for the quality and quantity of food and the outstanding ambience is quite frankly a bargain.
Give Natie or Bastian a call, the number is on the signboard, and try it out - tell them I sent you and maybe we'll get another free meal!