David Higgs is both one of South Africa’s most acclaimed chefs and part of the team behind Joburg favourites Marble, the Pantry, Zioux and Saint. Now they’re branching out to the Mother City and so Higgs has been back at the ocean, getting things fired up.
What would you order at Marble Cape Town?
The new Cape Town menu is based very much on Marble Joburg’s style, look and everything else. I know this sounds ridiculous, but I sort of fancy everything on the menu and it’s all pretty good. That said, I spent my teen years in Sea Point, and I remember that – the 1980s – being the era of steakhouses. I remember Buzbey Grill, Zorba’s, the Wooden Shoe, Watney Girls and the likes. And the steaks always included the carpetbag (a steak stuffed with oysters). So, we’ve got a carpet bag on the menu, which I’m really excited about – it’s come out really nicely. Obviously, it’s a bit of a twist on the original!
The other thing worth saying is that people are expecting us to tilt more towards fish because this restaurant is near the sea. Of course, there is fish on the menu, as there is in Joburg, but what we pride ourselves on, what we do well, is meat. We’ve learnt a hell of a lot over the past eight years, and meat is really what we are about. That’s also the reason we’ve branched out to the Cape: we felt that there was a gap in the market for meat cooked on an open fire.
Where do you eat out when you’re off-duty?
Being back in Cape Town means I don’t have a home pantry and a cupboard full of food, so I’ve spent a bit of time before we open reconnecting with some chef mates. I’ve popped into Carne to see Giorgio Nava, who gave me a real spoil there as always. We drank some great wine and ate some good meat.
I’ve met up with Bertus Basson and we popped into Obi to see our friends there and I loved the sushi. We had a great meal there. I’ve also eaten at Ouzeri, which was lovely, casual and just a nice little space to sit in. Then probably one of my favourites is Kloof Street House. I love sitting in the bar area, on the couches, and it’s always a great vibe. It’s always busy and the food is good. I’ve never had a bad evening there, and I find myself going back there all the time. Really, I can’t sit through multiple courses of food anymore. I just like the relaxing side of it.
Marble Cape Town is taking bookings already, here.
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