Reuben's
What is it about firsts?
I never came first in a race, never got a first in an exam, never won first place in a competition.
But there I was on Wednesday, and it seemed to me that all my firsts had arrived at once.
I was eating in Reuben Riffel’s first restaurant in Cape Town. It was his first service, on his first day, and I was going to do the first review.
My firsts with Reuben go back a bit (first to announce that he would be opening at the One and Only on August 1st http://www.spill.co.za/chefs-chat/reuben-riffel-for-the-one-and-only-cape-town/2520/ In fact the One and Only and me have a history of firsts, as I was the first to announce that Gordon Ramsay was to close at the One and Only. http://www.spill.co.za/south-african-restaurant-reviews/gordon-ramsays-maze-at-the-oneonly-has-closed/2381/
But enough fluffing up of my own feathers, on to the review.
The space is still the same. The only difference is that the name “Reuben’s” is hanging over the main door, and there’s a metal plate in the lift to tell you which floor to get off at.
The tables have a kind of latex/plastic impression of his name on it, and there are bottles of very posh Willow Creek Director’s Reserve on every table. Nice touch.
Reuben, his wife Maryke and baby Latika.
The biggest change though, is in the staff. Always professional and sharp, they now have an extra dimension to their demeanour. Having thought about it for a couple of days, I concluded that they are genuinely and deeply happy. Happy to have a pro behind the kitchen operations, a pro who knows about good ingredients, preparing them and getting them out of the kitchen onto tables.
Reuben seems to have, at this early stage, communicated his way of doing things to each and every one of them. And it shows. The team now have a captain.
The menu is basically the same as his Franschhoek restaurant. Same number of starters, mains and desserts. The old favourites are there; Slow Braised Onion Soup, Chilli Salted Baby Squid, Double Baked Goats Cheese Souffle and Tart of Blue Rock. Similar mains include Crisp Pork Belly, Lamb Rack, Steak Tartar, and Beef Sirloin.
Our lunch of chili salt squid, Malmesbury green asparagus, French onion soup and chilli and sage spiced butternut ravioli was delicious.
The One and Only Cape Town.
It was kind of weird being there, as I associate Reuben, indelibly in my mind, with Franschhoek. After the Gordon Ramsay shennanigans it was slightly surreal to be sitting there in the O&O with a Reuben menu in front of me.
Everything slotted into place when Reuben joined us at our table for a chat. He really is all genuine smiles, charisma and encompassing a total and deeply held set of beliefs about food, and people. Reuben understands what has to be done in this restaurant to make it a success. As he outlined his future plans I got the sense that he has a profound understanding of what the issues have been in this ungainly space, and how to fix them.
But for now, he has taken his food heritage from Franschhoek and plonked it fairly and squarely into this garish Sol Kerzner edifice in the Waterfront.
Will it work? Yes.
It will work because, for the first time, you now have a trained expert team, with leadership, on on both sides of the pass. Most importantly, there is now a sense of confidence and and belief within the team.
And you also have family. Sister Carmen will oversee front of house, as will Reuben’s wife Maryke.
Reuben laughed as he told me his mother will not be baking the bread as she does for Franschhoek.
Ah well, you can’t have everything.
Reuben’s at the One and Only.
restaurantreservations@oneandonlycapetown.com
021 431 5222
POSTSCRIPT. Along with Reuben moving in there have been a few other changes at the One and Only Cape Town. A “Resort Manager” with the magical name of Wendy Potter takes over the helm. On asking, tongue in cheek, if she was related to Harry the person at the One and Only asked me to hold the line while she checked.
Out goes Tony Romer Lee, General Manager, who will pop up again at The Cellars Hohenort on October 1st. We wish him well.
PR and Communications Manager, Etienne de Villiers, has also departed.
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I think that Reuben’s will succeed because Reuben himself is such a genuine hardworking really nice guy. And to have someone like Maryke by your side is just such a bonus.
I look forward to goinng to check it out, it certianly can only be a big improvement and I wish him all the very best. ps congrats on all the firsts Clare!
S x
Congrats on all the firsts and we will most definitely go check it out when we come back!
Cheers.
Karine. Majeka House, Stellenbosch.
Thanks Karine, and thanks also for showing me how to do the double decanting method of pouring wine. When will you be starting the training courses?
would be a honour to work for him
Eugene, You better believe it. Everyone who works for or with Reuben adores him.
Rueben is a jewel in the crown of cape town cuisine. he sticks to traditional dishes and does not try to impress or target the money set. friends of mine went to his place in Franschhoek recently and raved about it, will try soon and hope that he can maintain his standards.
I was at Rubens last Saturday and had quite a different experience to that reported above. While the food was excellent, the service was simply bad and the concept lacking in consistency. Here’s why:
My husband and I were placed at a small bistro style table up against a column. First, in my opinion, this table was too small and should not be utilised in a restaurant of this caliber. Second, the table up against the column should not exist in this class of restaurant, especially with so much space available. Third, even if this small, poorly positioned table did exist, it should be assigned last when all other tables are full, not when more than half the restaurant was empty.
The service was simply bad as:
When we arrived, we were shown to the table by one gentleman who took our initial drinks order (still, sparkling water). Then a lady came by to introduce herself and inform us she would be taking care of our table for the evening. She, however, did very little of this for the evening. The dishes were generally served by varying members of staff, giving no continuity in service. I suspect that staff are scheduled to individual tasks based on availability, not based on a consistent experience for the customer. While the efficiency-based staff scheudling may be good for the bottom line, it failed to be effective, with our wine glasses not being topped-up and our main course dishes not being cleared promptly. This led to me resorting to getting the wine from the distantly placed wine bucket myself and being within seconds of placing our main course plates on the empty table next to us. For the dessert/coffee order, coffee was promised to be delivered with dessert .. it arrived 10 minutes after dessert.
As stated, the food was delicious. The concept was, however confusing. The starter and the desert were plated on beautiful modern porcelain in an avant-garde, manner. The main courses were plated “bistro” style, similar to what I would do at home if in a hurry. I could not figure out if this restaurant wants to be sophisticated or home-style and this was quite confusing for me.
All in all we found the experience disappointing – with so many other good restaurants in Cape Town, we won’t be in a hurry to return.
Hi Eamonn,
Sorry to hear about your unsatisfactory service experiences at Reubens in the O&O. At least the food sounded good. I think he’s going to take another while to settle down and get the processes moving properly at the O&O. It is such a difficult venue though. I think the hotel feels like it’s an old design that Sol Kerzner had for a hotel in Las Vegas and he wanted to use it up as he had already paid for it.