Acclaimed Pierneef à La Motte Restaurant on La Motte Estate has recently introduced its Summer Menu – a celebration of traditional Cape Winelands Cuisine, served in a way that both entices the palate and stimulates conversation.
While the new menu stays true to the estate’s passion for conserving heritage and tradition as well as its commitment to using local and seasonal produce, Chef Michelle Theron not only produces delectable plates echoing the beauty of this Franschhoek setting, but also manages to introduce a certain sense of theatre to the table.
Amongst starters such as Pickled Franschhoek trout, Guinea-fowl ravioli and the estate’s signature Cape bokkom salad, a ‘1510’ curry-scented seafood stands out for it sense of history. Based on a recipe by Thomas van der Noot, dated 1510, the dish presents slow-cooked octopus, grilled squid and steamed mussels in a delicate age-old Dutch curry. All dishes on the menu come with a wine suggestion and the single-vineyard 2011 La Motte Chardonnay recommended with this special seafood dish beautifully complements its complex yet gentle flavour profile.
Vegetarian options such as the Textures of Cauliflower (a favourite of Chef Michel Roux Senior’s wife on a recent visit to Franschhoek!) and Gluten-free quinoa and gem squash risotto embrace modern eating. The selection of meats includes Slow-cooked beef cheek, New-season Karoo lamb and Weltevrede Beef with baked bone-marrow butter as well as a Pasture pork cassoulét with spring greens, cannellini beans and farm salami – packed with flavour, it is a wonderful combination with the estate’s 2011 La Motte Syrah.
Desserts are picture-perfect and spot-on for the celebratory season ahead. Choices include decadences such as a Chocolate tasting, 12-hour baked fruit and a selection of pastries, but it is the choice between a fashionable savoury dessert and an innovative interpretation of the traditional floating islands or îles flottantes that really creates some drama around the table. Both beautifully presented, the sophisticated Goat’s milk blanc mange with iced hibiscus tea, strawberry consommé jelly and strawberry and citrus sorbet and the playful Snow eggs with its textures of custard and meringue and fragrant combination of rose and coconut – served within a coconut dome! – can’t be further apart, yet both entice the palate in a way that is quite theatrical.
While known for its focus on the classic dishes served in the Cape Winelands since the earliest days at the Cape, Pierneef à La Motte’s offering is innovative and fresh, staying on-trend with the latest culinary movements.
Featured image: A savoury dessert: Goat’s milk blanc mange with iced hibiscus tea, strawberry and citrus sorbet and strawberry consommé jelly.
Reservations are recommended and can be made at:
T +27 (0)21 876 8800 or E pierneef@la-motte.co.za
Also read more on the Pierneef à La Motte Chef’s Table and Winelands Tea.
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