the test kitchen

after waiting 2 months for my reservation, i finally made it to the test kitchen. this is a tough one to rate. overall i would say it was a good experience. was it the best restaurant i've ever been to? no. was the foodworththe price? ehhh...maybe. i still haven't made up my mind on that one. i opted for the 5 course menu with the wine pairing @ r770. i know i rave about myoga, but the restaurant offers an 8 course menu for 500 something....much better deal. personally i thought myoga was better too. but being as i am rating test kitchen, i will stick to that. =) food was good, wine was good --- my advice, only go if you can truly afford such a pricey meal. it's cool to say i've eaten at the best place in africa, but it's also cool to buy 2 meals for the price of one. ::cough cough:: myoga.

let me start this off by saying that if i could give them 20/10 i would. i booked this as a treat for my partner on his birthday and wow just wow. the service was incredible, when we seated the waiter immediately asked what allergies we have, as someone who is deathly allergic to fish,this was a huge deal and it certainly set the tone for the rest of the meal. we opted for the 5 course tasting menu with the wine pairing- i can't fault it, the food was delicious and the wine was gorgeous with the meal. the waiters were knowledgeable and polite. treat yourself to this one. itsworthit.

my hubby spoiled me too much for our monthavarsary while being in cape town! the best fine dining, best tasting food i have ever tasted! paired with wines and great service, i had the most amazing lunch with my romantic husband. definitelyworththe money!

nothing comes close to this culinary experience. tastes delicious and amazing - do include the wine pairing. it'sworthit!
each taste is a gastronomic experience. chef luke is a creative genius. this is one of the best restaurants in the world. i will be back for more!

definitelyworththe wait! yes, going go the test kitchen requires booking long in advance, but once you experience their exquisite cuisine, you would understand why!

beautifully plated bursts of flavour, in the form of a 7 course tasting menu, was more than my taste buds could have ever imagine! the daring combinations are excuted in the most magnificent ways, leaving you wanting more.

we even had the pleasure of having chef luke dale roberts come to our table to ask if all was in order. our waitress was brilliant and wonderfully knowledgeable about the dishes being served. the sommelier provided us with a delicious pairing which worked with all the dishes being served.

test kitchen is a must for any foodie! it was a great way to celebrate our anniversary.

it was lucky that the october reservations for the test kitchen only came out in september. it gave me plenty of (last minute) time to read about where i wanted to eat in cape town and decide if it wasworthpaying the r2250 + 12% service to go to the test kitchen. the alternative would have been to try the pot luck club, and in hindsight maybe i should have tried both. but there were other food places in cape town i liked the sound of and food there is otherwise relatively cheap.

by far the greatest restaurant in the whole the country. there is no other way to describe the experience than it being a culinary journey.

i was lucky enough to get a booking on my birthday last night (having made the booking 3 months in advance).

the evening is divided into two halves: the dark room and light room. it begins in the dark room where you served two cocktails and a variety of snack themed dishes, including pork crackling and guinness (if you choose the meat option, is vegetarian so it the pork was substituted for something else).

afterwards you are escorted into the light room, which feels as though you are being transported into another world — it's so different! here in the light room you are served more traditional dishes but the each dish leaves you wondering where on earth all these flavours are coming from, it's quite astounding.

we also opted to do the tea pairing as you can't do a tea pairing anywhere else, and it was wellworthit. each tea is carefully chosen to complement each dish in special way.

in the weeks leading up to our reservation, i was wondering if ttk would live up to the hype, and how it would compare to the likes of la colombo and waterkloof (the second and third best restaurants in sa according to eatout for 2017), and it completely lived up to all of my expectations. there really is no restaurant quite like the test kitchen.

firstly to get the opportunity to eat at the test kitchen you have to consider yourself lucky as there is only a dinner service available for 40 diners. i love the new online booking system which i think is more fair. there is no preferential system, bookings for a three month period go live online. i think it would be easier to get a booking for larger tables as i noticed very few two seaters at the restaurant. the restaurant is small so i don't think u need to sit at the chefs table to see what they are doing.

the menu is set and the option of tea pairing and two different wine pairings. i liked that the water was complimentary.

dinner started of with snacks in the dark room. it's a very small room so a bit overwhelming at first with the amount of people already in there and the service staff.

there is only one menu priced at r1600 which i think is reasonable given that it is 19 courses, with complimentary water and two complimentary cocktails. it's cheaper than the other fine dining places where you can expect to pay r1200 for anywhere between 6-10 courses. tea pairing costs another r400. i tried this at the saxon and didn't like it. the gourmand wine pairing which we opted for cost r650 and the iconic wine pairing cost r950. i thought the wine pairing expensive given that it's r650 for five pairings.

we got to have two complimentary cocktails each where the selection was the test kitchen g&t, sweet, salty, bitter and sour. we had one of each of the last four. the cocktails were quite strong, i wouldn't say they wowed me, i have preferred some of the cocktails i have tasted at the plc. i do like the idea and think it's a nice touch.

the dark room is dark with very cool music and a smoky smell. it definitely transported me back to london. i really loved it. we had 10 snacks in the dark room.

the test kitchens billionaires shortbread with foie gras was delicious.

slangetjies were this light crackers flavoured with curry leaf.

salted stone pine nuts are not something i can say much on.

local liquorice cured waygu biltong was the best biltong the fiancé has had.

pico green vegetables with ssamjang dip and marmite on toast. the dip with marmite on toast crumbs was so yum.

pork scratching, pint of guinness, celeriac salt and vinegar. i had the veg version of this with some crackers and it was so good. the fiancé thought the veg version was better since it was lighter. a really moreish and fun dish.

cheddar cheese ploughman, ttk branston pickle should be eaten in one bite and is a rich creamy cheesy deliciousness

peking quail sandwich was exactly how quail should be cooked. the only place where i have eaten quail and i loved it.

smoked lamb, barley and toasted ginger wafer, xo dressing. another perfectly cooked dish. the lamb almost melts in your mouth and the xo dressing was delicious.

shiso granite, sake jelly, yuzu compressed cucumber was a welcome palate cleanser. not my favourite granite flavours but it did the job.

i was already feeling full after the dark room but we still had another ten courses to go in the light room!

the light room is a more formal dining setup. the ambience was very busy and bustling, i much prefer a more laid back romantic fine dining experience. it was also very loud so we couldn't really hear what our server was saying who also spoke very fast.

we started with the bread and butter course with three different types of bread a kingklip dip and salted butter. the bread was so delicious i ate them all. i especially loved the one with onion in it.

12 hour smoked trout tartare with homemade cream, lemon verbena oil and dill oil had a good balance of flavours

ttk niçoise salad was a yummy tuna dish

char grilled scallop with cauliflower and cheese and back garlic salsa was the fiance's favourite dish of the evening. the scallop was perfectly cooked and the sweetness was balance with the rest of the dish and not overpowered.

lamb sweetbreads, liquorice liver jus, lime gel and preserved lemon and pinenut gremolata was another delicious and perfectly cooked flavorsome lamb dish.

pan seared duck breast with sour cherry clafoutis, duck liver stuffing and our cherry jus was perfection.

lamb minestrone, potato parmesan dumpling, lamb and tomato extraction was comfort food take to the next level. this had me licking the plate clean.

bread milk and honey served as a plate cleanser. probably my least favourite dish as i didn't like the quince flavour.

strawberry rose icecream, coconut meringue, minted strawberry sherbet, rhubarb and burnt vanilla butter, lemon bush and cinzano snow. a light ending to a perfect meal. i did expect dessert to be more wow or more sweet but that might have been a bit much given the amount of food we had just eaten.

to end of we had ttk millionaires shortbread with chocolate petit fours.

i was happy to see a 12% gratuity automatically added to the bill as i am so sick of people who are stingy tippers.

i loved the test kitchen experience and i am glad i got to try it. it's not a restaurant that i would try again soon as the price is a lot (2.5k a person) and also it's more food than i would usually like to eat. but it's definitelyworthan experience at least once. everything we ate was faultless and delicious.

also don't get me wrong i think the price is duly justified as you would pay more at an international restaurant for the same experience, it's just not something you can do often.

i've been 4 times over the last couple of years, and every time i am blown away by their menu. it's not cheap, but for an unforgettable meal such as theirs, it'sworthit. looking forward to my next visit!

my experience dates back to over a year ago. i'm confident that the experience today would be equally positive. we were a group of five close friends.

my friends chose the wines. i tasted but didn't drink. they were all very content and impressed.

we chose one of a small number of menus, or food sets if you wish, consisting of some six dishes.

it's too long ago for me to be precise. i remember the ritual and the enjoyment. with each the waiter explained patiently and in the detail what we were going to taste. what i do recall was how each dish was indeed a special event, a spectacle to the eye and to the palate.

as i love dessert and i recall that it was an equally great treat, but cannot be factual as to what it exactly. by then i was overwhelmed.

my memory of this evening is as a memorable spectacular cullinary experience.

the fact that we could observe the activity in the kitchen; that the waiters were knowledgeable and utterly attentive and polite; and that the food was superb, all that made up for having to park the car outside in woodstock and that on arrival and departure we were invaded by no less than three men who rivaled and battled to be rewarded for the responsible task of watching the car. it was allworthwhile, no doubt.

i highly recommend this experience to any food connoisseur or foodie. i also would recommend that one tastes everything slowly. make a feast of it.

we live in johannesburg and i planned my husband's surprise 30th in cape town (in june) around a birthday lunch at the test kitchen. i made the booking 4 months in advance and only managed to secure a lunch because they were fully booked for supper till the end of july!

we were definitely not disappointed. everything from the wine pairing to the service was outstanding. 

we had the best seats in the house, on the bar next to the kitchen. the chefs were so skilled and their manners were immaculate. we got to see luke dale roberts in action in the kitchen as well, which made it all the more special. 

the food was brilliant! the flavours from each dish ranged from subtle to explosive. each flavour combination was well thought out and executed. definitelyworththe trip to cape town and will definitely be going back when we can!!

ahhhh it was everything i had anticipated it to be and more... 

i had been dying t to go to test kitchen for years and finally got the opportunity to go for our one month wedding anniversary, please note i booked this evening 6 month's prior to our wedding :) 

wow wow wow, the food was so full of flavour, flavours everywhere, flavours i didn't even know existed, my taste buds were in 7th heaven.

the decor was different and perfect for the vibe and atmosphere this type of restaurant wants you to experience. 

we went the full monty and did the set menu with wine pairing, yeah when the 1st dish arrives you get that 'mcdonald's pit stop on your way home" thought but by the time you get half way through the courses you have the "am i going to make it through all these dishes" thought and by the time the last pudding dish arrives you have had a more that satisfying amount to eat.

the waiters were amazing, very friendly, efficient and everyone helped everyone, it wasn't your typical allocated waiter per table.

of course this place is a little pricey and something i would like to do hopefully maybe once every other year, depending on my financial officer but shosi it wasworththe wait andworththe money!

one of the best culinary experiences we have ever had. tucked away in old biscuit mill, this place is absolutely unpretentious. loved the wine pairing menu - the attention to details by the staff in explaining the rationale for each wine with the food is commendable. truly loved every course of the meal - the artichokes appetizers, the salmon fillings, the tuna and the loin main course and the rubaab dessert. this place is a foodie s delight andworthevery penny and the long waiting time. an absolute absolute gem of a place and my most memorable meal- something that makes you fall in love with the food. @ gaurav anand - thanks for this experience :)))

an exceptional if bank-depleting restaurant experience. it'sworthit, by the way. but be warned .... few dining experiences will be up to par after this.

you only come here if you a real foodie, and appreciate very out of the box plating and cooking styles. really enjoyed their bread basket. we had the set menu, which constantly changes. its fun and exciting to try all the dips and sauces that comes with all the dishes. you will find different tastes and textures when you start mixing up the ingredients. service is awesome. but its a must try for all the foodies. very expensive, but it isworthit if you dont mind coughing up over 1k per person.