Find your festive feast in Cape Town

If cooking and clearing up the same old Christmas lunch at home feels more like a chore than a celebration, why not create a new tradition with family and friends and head out to one of Cape Town’s favourite restaurants for a foodie feast.

Foxcroft

It’s been a year since La Colombe’s ex-pastry chef Glen Williams first wowed us with his beautifully creative sharing plates. Now Foxcroft is moving away from tapas to a neo-bistro style, still with the same mastery of ingredients – and the Christmas menu looks indulgent. Expect small Christmas touches like potato and rosemary sourdough with roast chicken butter and confit garlic, liver parfait with toasted Christmas cake and cured duck. There will be dishes off the newly launched summer menu with the likes of braised pork tongue, fermented chilli and peanuts, and lightly cured yellowtail with mango pickle and house-made bottarga. And Foxcroft’s desserts always have delightful celebratory feel, ending Christmas lunch on a high note. R1,200 per person for six courses. 

Reuben’s at One and Only

Decked with festive finery and gloriously laden buffet tables, Reuben’s at One and Only presents a fabulous feast with live music from Amy Tjasink. Complimentary bubbly is followed by a vast array of starters, from gravadlax, foie gras and confit duck to sumptuous salads. A cornucopia of mains includes traditional roasts of turkey and gammon, a whole suckling pig, Chalmar beef, Karoo lamb, creative curries, salt-crusted baked goat, seared kingklip and more. The dessert table encourages holiday indulgence, with everything from trifle to macaroons, mince pies, panettone bread and butter pudding, cakes, creams and tarts. R1,450 per person for the buffet. 

La Mouette

The sheltered courtyard at Sea Point’s hidden gem, La Mouette, is a lovely setting for a Christmas lunch full of good cheer, sitting around the fountain drinking great wines paired with a special six-course tasting menu. Chef Henry Vigar has won a loyal following over the years with his creative and beautifully presented dishes. His Christmas menu is summery and festive, including seared tuna with black garlic mayonnaise, roasted pineapple and miso, roast duck breast with sweet potato, duck sausage roll and kale, and herb gnocchi with salt and pepper chestnuts, mushrooms and edible twigs, finishing with a Cape Malay dessert and Christmas petits fours. R850 per person for six courses, R1,450 with wines. 

This article was originally published in the Sunday Times Neighbourhood: Property and Lifestyle guides. Visit Yourneighbourhood.co.za