reuben's

we were quite looking forward todiningat reuben's, and decided to spend our last night in franschhoek here. we pre-booked, so were quite disappointed to arrive and be seated in the corner close to the kitchen entrance and bathrooms. two requests to be removed were met with "i'll see what i can do" and no follow-up. we also waited quite a while for someone to take our order. while i can understand that they may have wanted to go with a more casualdiningexperience, there are certain expectations at this price point. alas, this restaurant did not live up to them. the wait staff are either badly trained or we were in a position that was ignored; we barely saw our waitress and had empty glasses on the table for a while at some point.

we were presented with breads to start. the waitress had to be prompted to tell us what they were. neither was very good or memorable. the waitress didn't remove the plates when done, so we had to juggle the plates when starters arrived.

we went with the chicken livers and reuben's famous chilli salted squid for starters. the liver dish was pretty good, if a bit undersalted. a few more chicken livers would have been great. the same with the brioche, which was miles ahead of the starter breads. we've had the squid at the cape town reuben's before, and really enjoyed it. this one didn't measure up; it was very oily and left an unpleasant finish, as if it had been fried in old oil. the herbs accompanying the squid were nice and fresh-tasting in comparison.

the wait for the main was very long, with no attendance from the waitress in that time nor a reason for the wait. when it i eventually arrived, it thankfully didn't disappoint. the chateaubriand was excellent, certainly in the top 3 i've had in sa; it was perfectly cooked with a nice char on the outside, and very flavourful. it does however come at a price, r245, which is quite a bit more than most high-end restaurants. it was served with 4 (yes, just 4) triple-cooked chips, a small herb salad, and bearnaise sauce which was quite good. the lasagne was nice if undersalted, and could have done with more mushrooms to balance the sweet butternut. but overall a pleasant dish. it was also just warm rather than hot, but hunger kept us from sending it back.

we decided to go for desserts. the mango parfait wasn't nearly as good as the salted caramel dessert; the mango flavours were quite muted. the salted caramel dessert was excellent, with the chocolate elements in the plate shining.

we would return, if reuben's is here as we hear the quality is better when he's around.
we should add that several tables emptied out during the course of the night, but not once did anyone ask if we still wanted to move.

my first time trying out reuben's. although the food was good...i was a bit disappointed as this didn't meet my expectations of flavour for a luxurydiningrestaurant. the service was great but i feel there were a few misses on the plate.

while roaming and touring the wine yards around cape town landed in this small bistro of renowned south african chef reuben in franschhoek wine valley. there is adininghall and open area. one page menu. tried creamy chicken and prawn curry carrot sambal tempura veg on bed of saffron rice. miso glazed corn on the cob. salted caramel tart with white chocolate ice cream. great food vfm excellent. relaxed ambience as you would expect in sa. fantastic afternoon because of food where taste was the king

we have been wanting to try reubens for a while, and finally got to go, however i was disappointed. not to get me wrong, the food is good, remembering that it is finediningso, the flavours can be unusual, but that doesn't take anything away from the good quality. the dessert was incredible - probably the best dessert i have ever had. saying all of this, the restaurant lacks atmosphere. there is nothing special about the set up and i genuinely believe that a dinner encompasses an entire experience, so the atmosphere is really important. overall, i would much rather try le quartier francaise the next time i am in franschhoek.

i am so so disappointed! i have been going to reubens for the last 6 years and it was probably my most average experience. they have gone from finediningto bistro style in my opinion.

the food was all cooked well and the flavours were there, but it lacked a certain finese. the portions are massive, almost way too much. i miss their old style!! the starter was underwelming, nothing to remember.

i will only be back again when they up their game.

my boyfriend took me here for my birthday. and it was superb. atmosphere check, service check, properdiningexperience check. food is tasteful yet simplistic - loved it.

i often hear mixed reviews about reubens but when i have visited i always have a nice time.
the vibe of the restaurant is great and the service is friendly however it can be a little slow when busy.
i always struggle to choose between reuben's pork belly or the duck - both of which are superb. casual frenchdiningin its most relaxed and accessible form. it might be expensive but don't expect fine dining.

i have eaten at reuben's quite a few times over the last couple of times and have never been disappointed. delicious food, great wines, lovely atmosphere (even whendiningon your own) plus the plating and presentation is beautiful. they also have amazing coffee!

all elements of a greatdiningexperience came together perfectly except for the service which was frustrating slow. since we went at the height of the peak season, it could be attributed to just too many tables to serve. will try it again to re-assess.