What a hidden gem! Literally hidden in the mountains... I came here to treat my better half on his birthday and was absolutely blown away by the view, the friendly service and the amazing food. Wow!
Walking up the stairs with the fountains beside you on either side, the huge "ROCA" sign up in front and the picture perfect mountains in the background, you start to feel like you've entered some sort of enchanted cave. Upon entering, we were welcomed with open arms and shown to our table. When making the booking, I told them it was for a birthday. They put a great effort into trying to make our lunch special - from everyone wishing happy birthday to being seated at a perfect table right up against the window, with a perfect view over the Franschhoek valley.
Our waitress was very friendly, knowledgable and helpful. We wanted to have something like a sweet sparkling wine to start the lunch off with, but the sweetest they had was a brut rosé. She brought us a glass to taste, but we decided against it. Instead, she recommended the rosé, which was a dark shade of red and looked more like a pinot noir than a rosé. But it tasted lovely - exactly what we were looking for!
After ordering our starters and mains, they brought us some bread. My first impression of a restaurant is usually formed based on its bread and its bathrooms. Bathrooms were tidy, but the bread wasn't anything special. A bit warm, but not fresh from the oven. The butter was hard and didn't melt when you tried to spread it on the bread. However, I was completely blown away when our starters arrived. I'm really surprised that this restaurant isn't classified as a fine dining place, because the presentation and quality of the food sure does live up to the standards! I had the fish cake, while my better half had the pork roulade. The pork was delicious - soft meat that the knife cut through like butter, lovely textures and flavors that worked. The fish cake itself was a bit dry, but the salmon mousse, with its dominating salty taste, was perfectly complimented by the beetroot purée. And it also had lovely textures, with each element being a perfect fit to the overall dish.
We were lucky enough to have placed our order before everyone else, so our mains arrived quickly. We indulged in the Mozambique chicken and the kingklip special. I was bent on also having the chicken, but they had me at "kingklip with a lemon risotto" *mouthwatering*. Admittedly, I'm always skeptical about ordering kingklip - so often it turns out being rubbery and flavorless. However, the chef obviously knew what he was doing! It was cooked to perfection, with just a light browning on the meat. And the risotto... Oh my word! It was amazing! Beautifully presented, but my only complaint was that I felt the broccoli was a bit undercooked for my liking - a bit too hard and difficult to cut into. My better half couldn't stop raving about the chicken! In fact, he was so impressed, he gave it a 6/5. The meat was melt-in-your-mouth soft and tender, and perfectly deboned. As my he put it "you can see that the chef has a passion for his food" - big portion, but definitely no compromise on quality, expertly deboned. He was still going on about it the next morning!
We didn't actually have any room left for dessert, but my better half couldn't resist the malva pudding and I had a craving for a chocolate bomb. So malva pudding and chocolate trio is was! The malva was average - not bad, but nothing special. However, it was nice of them to try write "Happy Birthday" on the plate with chocolate sauce. Unfortunate that the custard flowed all over the place and made a bit of a mess of the whole thing. My chocolate trio was delicious - not too sweet, not too bitter, but leaning more to the dark chocolate bitterness side. It was beautifully balanced by the addition of cream and fresh fruits, which really helped to make the dessert a whole lot lighter than it otherwise would've been. I had a hard time choosing my dessert among all the tasty options, but I was definitely not disappointed by my final decision!
The quality of food, the view and the fact that you're in Franschhoek, one of the tourism capitals of Cape Town, meant that the bill was going to be a fortune. But it was money well spent in my opinion! You definitely got what you paid for, with large portions and fantastic flavors. The chef got a standing ovation from us - his Mozambique chicken took the cake, but all the other dishes were close seconds. Well done to the amazing team in the kitchen and on the floor - ROCA staff, you really made the day special!
Highly recommended! I can't fault this restaurant. We'll definitely be returning in the near future!
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