According to The Sardine Diet these cute little fish may keep you beautiful, clever and ward off heart attacks on account of their oily nature. Not any common garden fats but the worshipped Omega 3s and 6s. For none of the above reasons I leap at the chance to order them here.
Well we aren’t actually at La Boheme but are rather at sibling Spanish tapas joint La Bruixa next door, which takes the excess traffic when La Boheme is full . No problem here as we had been informed of this on booking. The La Boheme menu is available in the Spanish place. In truth there is very little difference between the two: design-wise they both exude the same trendy dark tones and collectively they are run by a couple.
The grilled sardines ordered off the La Bruixa tapas menu are divine with the provided squeeze of lemon. And beautiful too. There is something satisfying about eating an animal that looks like one, head and all. These are no I&J Smackeroos. My girlfriend, who is a tad more squeamish than me keeps invading my national waters with a darting fork action.
She enjoys her onion marmalade with gorgonzola and chick peas on bruschetta. For me the scales tip too close to marmalade sweet and too far from the smelly cheese.
A glass of Elgin Ridge 282 Sauvignon Blanc 2009 (R40 a glass) doesn’t have notes of guava. It is guava. A good one at that, though too overpowering to drink all night.
Feeling beautiful, healthy and a little less slowed up than normal (in my make-believe world) it is time for pig with all its bad ass fat included. Pork Belly. The lean middle is tasty though a tad dry. Pork can’t even be a little rare but it shouldn’t be overdone either. This makes it a less forgiving meat than beef. The layer of fat sticking to the lean meat is properly fatty and the outside crisp. Models can easily cut off the fat.
The fish cakes are unable to be saved by a fresh mayonnaise. My girlfriend says there is too much potato in them. She is generous.
“They aren’t right,” as my mother would euphemistically put it. Thank God I didn’t order them as they are inedible.
“They aren’t right,” as my mother would euphemistically put it. Thank God I didn’t order them as they are inedible.
The slide after the starters conspires to ruin the experience but inexplicably doesn’t. Is this a case of first impressions lasting or is it something else harder to pin down? So many factors influence dining enjoyment, or lack thereof, including mood on arrival.
Driving here through the new landscaping on the gum tree side of Green Point’s Main Road, for so long an eyesore, helps. As does the friendly service on arrival.
Main course options well under R100 and even many two course choices for under that price too. A glass of Ken Forrester Chenin Blanc R28 and plenty others by the glass.
Tables for two at La Bruixa are tiny, struggling to contain mains, wine glasses and a serving of vegetables. Like its neighbour, La Boheme, the joint is small, resulting in restricted personal space. Good for a polite riot for two or more. Vegetarian options limited.
La Bruixa is open for breakfast and as you would expect does Spanish omelettes.
Tom Robbins
January 14, 2010
For a more recent review of La Boheme click here
La Boheme Wine Bar & Bistro
+27 (0)21 434 8797
Email: info@labohemebistro.co.za
www.labohemebistro.co.za
341 Main Rd
Sea Point
Central Cape Town
Tags: bruschetta, chick peas, Elgin Ridge 282 Sauvignon Blanc, Elgin Ridge wines, fish cakes, gorgonzola, Green Point, grilled sardines, I&J, Ken Forrester Chenin Blanc, Ken Forrester wines, La Boheme, La Boheme restaurant, La Boheme Wine Bar & Bistro, La Bruixa, Omega 3 fats, onion marmalade, pig, pork belly, Sardine Diet, sardines, Sea Point, Sea Point restaurants, Spanish, Spanish omelettes, tapas
