Five Flies

One of Cape Town’s most iconic restaurants

You’ll find this national monument, restaurant, and bar on Keerom Street. Originally a bank in ye olde Cape Town, the building has been preserved, and its history is tangible.

The property is actually two buildings, and at the centre is a courtyard. The 200-seater restaurant is made up of private dining rooms, a bar that opens out onto a courtyard, as well as a cigar lounge and bar upstairs. There’s also a smoking section for diners.

“Food was central to my upbringing,” says executive chef Greg Baverstock. Greg has been at Five Flies for just over a year. He and new owner Jo-Ann During have breathed new life into this city stalwart.

“My mother’s French. So, we were always cooking,” he continues.  “I didn’t always want to be a chef though. At first I wanted to be a dentist; mine drove a BMW, and I thought that was pretty cool.”

Luckily Greg soon came to his senses, and started his training at London culinary Mecca: Le Gavroche. After that he ran a local pub, and then also did a stage with Gordon Ramsay. A time he said he; ‘picked a lot of lettuce.’ Not one to rest on his laurels, he was made head chef of The Dining Room at the tender age of 21.

“In 2004 I came to Cape Town on holiday, and never went back.” His career in the Mother City has seen him at Moyo Spier, then Harbour House (where he turned 700 tables a day), and he set up Bardelli’s in Kenilworth.

“This restaurant’s always been good,” he says referring to Five Flies. “But it’s been kind of stuck in the past. Since I’ve took over I’ve made the sauces lighter, and the food more contemporary.”

Feasting in famous favourite Five Flies

Before we settle in the courtyard for lunch, Jo-Ann wants to show us around. First up is ‘the Madiba room’. Covering one wall are clocks of all shapes and sizes; from antiques to more modern styles. “The clocks symbolise the time he spent in prison,” Jo-Ann explains. Leading off this room is the wine cellar. A dark, intimate room, and inside there’s a table set up for two. “We switch off the lights, so guests can dine by candlelight.” It’s a very romantic setting; the walls are lined with wine, and, originally it was the bank’s vault. “You can book this table at no extra charge,” adds Jo-Ann.

Five Flies is much larger than you’d expect. Downstairs has a classic, historical feel—wood panels, tiles from the settler period, marble staircases, and original wooden tables. Jo-Ann has plans to revamp the upstairs bar and make it, ‘more hip and happening’, and even bring in a salsa element. Up yet more stairs there are corporate function rooms.

Stomachs rumbling we head back down to the courtyard. At its centre there’s an old well. “Water bubbles up when it rains,” Jo-Ann tells me. The well is apparently connected to an underground canal. The bar that opens out into the courtyard has pieces of exposed stone, which I’m told is as old as the Castle of Good Hope.

“All good food is cooked with French techniques; it’s just the ingredients that differ,” says Greg when I ask him about his cooking-style. “There’s also a lot of Asian influence in my cooking.”

A sharply dressed waiter brings a starter to the table. Hot-smoked salmon fillet with a sweet, succulent inside, served with avocado cream and soya sauce pearls. For main course we split battered fish and chips with made-on-the-spot tartar sauce; a warm smoked chicken and butternut salad dressed with a yellow pepper sauce; and crispy chilli salt squid.

“Lunch is more about fast-paced food,” says Jo-Ann. “People are on their break and want to eat something good, but also something quick. Dinner on the other hand, is a much more relaxed affair. We’re not interested in turning tables, but in giving our guests a gourmet evening.”

As for the wine experience? The winelist focuses on boutique farms, and all the waiting staff have been wine-trained, so expect on-the-nose pairings.

Greg has also put his creative stamp on the desserts. Recommended is the white chocolate and honeycomb cheesecake with dried apricot nougat, pistachio, sour cherry coulis and popcorn foam. He also tells me he plans to make a deconstructed Pina Colada dessert; think rum parfait and coconut jelly.

What’s in a name?

The original owners were inspired by iconic Dutch restaurant D’Vijff Vlieghen in the heart Amsterdam. An iconic restaurant itself, it’s been around for decades. And in a beautiful twist to the tale; Greg tells me that his grandmother used to eat there.

By Malu Lambert

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