Frères is an intimate French bistro. I was invited to dinner with the parentals and did not know anything about where we were dining the evening. What a pleasant surprise. Frères serves French classics without the usually side dish of pretentiousness.
Chef Jason Whitehead, personal chef to some of the rich and famous, conceptualised Frères as he wanted a space where he can prepare for all his clients and events. Frères has since resulted in a successful restaurant and is more than the front of house for Jason's prep kichen. For more about the start of Frères check out Jason's website.
As soon as you walk into the 35 seater space a sense of warmth and comfort washes over you. Front of house was extremely welcoming and very clued up about all the dishes the restaurant serves.
To kick off the evening we shared a garlicky baked camembert and pine nut fondue served with toasted bread. It was just enough to kickstart a evening of culinary delight. There is nothing more satisfying than simple cheese and bread and Frères just took it to another level. They claim their onion soup(R69) is one of the best and those that had it at our table loved it. Other starter options available are escargot(R69), Foie gras(R195) and rabbit terrine(R74).
I was very excited when I saw that they had bouillabaisse(R115) on their menu as I recently tried it for the first time at Piazzo Paradiso . Bouillabaisse is a fish stew that tradionally contains five different kind of fish. Now I really enjoyed my bouillabaisse at Frères but I do prefer Paradiso's as their "broth" had more substance to it but that is just due to personal taste. The broth is not usually as creamy as I like it.
Other at the table enjoyed the sirloin café de paris (R135) and had a choice of vegetables, fries or salad as a side dish. The majority had the vegetables which was a cheesy broccoli and cauliflower mixture. The"café de paris" suggests the butter sauce that accompanies the sirloin. The boyfriend raved about this and it really provides a richness to the dish without overpowering the original flavour of the meat.
Other mains that you can enjoy are pepper rib-eye steak(R148), duck confit a l'orange(R148), rabbit(R139) and ratatouille with halloumi(R98).
Frères did not slow down when we got to dessert and we finished our time there with delicious treats. The waiter said the star of the show is the apple tart with cinnamon and honey foam. Myself and the boyfriend shared this one and I had to keep everyone out of our plate as they longed for this warm baked piece of apple and cinnamon heaven. The other desserts were also great but that apple tart is a real show stealer.
Above is The Café Gourmand(R79) which is a platter of mini desserts such as crème brulee and lemon tart perfect for sharing.
As the space is small I would suggest that you book in advance. It was great though to see how graciously Frères tried to accommodate every "walk in" customer by shifting around tables and chairs. This just reinforced the humility this restaurant is managed with.
Frères delivers with quality French dishes but provides it in a homey and friendly atmosphere. That apple tart has my name written all over it! I can't wait to return. As our waiter said the whole evening, Frères is "gorge"!
Open
- Tuesday - Friday 12:00-22:30
- Saturday 18:00-22:30
Located at 46 Hans Strijdom Avenue, Foreshore, Cape Town (Next to Col Cacchio)
Contact them at 021 418 1609 or info@freres.co.za
Like them on Facebook
They have a website which is still under construction but you can request bookings from there
